We're Here Now
by The-SuperLizard
Summary: Alex and Maggie Danvers have decided that it's time. After months of discussions, they reached an agreement. It's time to get approved and head on over to St. Francis Home for Children.
1. Introductions: May 2018

Alex and Maggie were sitting across from the head of St. Francis Home for Children going through the final papers certifying them as a good Home before going to see all the children. They've been married for two years now and decided they were ready to adopt. They had both talked a lot about it and were thinking about adopting an older kid instead of a toddler. Being a police officer, Maggie knew the ins and outs of the foster system and once kids hit the age of 12, they are generally overlooked.

"Alright, everything seems in order here. Would you like to go see the children now? They're split between out back getting fresh air and an activity room." "Yes please," they both responded and followed Mr. Williams.

He took them to the activity room and they looked in the room for a few minutes before taking them outside. There were many children at the orphanage with was disheartening to see but they all looked pretty cheerful while playing.

They stepped outside and there were several more children out there. There were more older kids out here but they hadn't seen anyone over the age of 10. They looked around outside for a minute. They were shown both areas because they would then decide which to spend time in today. "So, where would you ladies like to go?" Mr. Williams asked them. Alex was about to say something when she paused. "Where's that music coming from?"

Maggie listened closely, and sure enough, faint sounds of a guitar were heard over the children playing. "Oh, that's Nova. She's thirteen, and she's actually up there in the tree." He pointed up and Maggie and Alex could see someone sitting pretty high in the massive tree. "How'd she even get up there?" Maggie asked him. "She does it every time she comes out here. No one can convince her to come down until they call time to come in. And none of the facilitators are willing to go up after her… Honestly, your best shot at talking to her is climbing it…" It was a very big and tall tree. She was up rather high in a sturdy section, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was none of the branches were really low. The lowest branch was maybe six and a half feet off the ground at best, possibly closer to seven feet.

Alex had a wicked grin on her face when she looked at Maggie who in return just chuckled and shook her head. "I'll think we'll stay out here. We love a challenge." "Alright. I'll be back in thirty minutes. Best of luck."

Alex and Maggie approached the tree. "Babe, you know I hate heights and I'm short…" "I'll be right there with you. Aren't you a little intrigued as to why she's up there?" Maggie grunted but didn't object. Alex circled the tree trying to find the best way to get to the lower branch. She stepped back and crossed her arms, staring for a few seconds longer.

"Here's the plan. I'm going to give you a leg up so you can reach that branch." Alex pointed to the one that was eight feet up. It was higher now that they were standing next to it. "There's a spot that looks like a foothold there, that I can use to get up." Maggie took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Okay, let's do this. Just don't let me fall." "Never babe. You can trust me." Maggie nodded and put her foot in Alex's hand. "On the count of three, you jump. Got it?" "Got it."

"1… 2… 3!" And Maggie latched onto the branch, swinging her legs up to pull herself up. She got out of the way, and Alex came up right after her. They sat on the branch looking at each other and broke out into giggles over the fact they just did that. "Alright, dork, let's get the rest of the way up to the kid. After you." Maggie gestured up the next eight feet up the tree to where the kid was. "You want me to go first just so you can stare at my ass." Alex squinted her eyes at Maggie, failing to hide her smirk. Maggie laughed not denying it, "just climb!"

Alex poked her head up to the branch the kid was sitting on. "Hi there." She stared at Alex like a deer in headlights and stopped playing her guitar. She had long natural bright red hair, almost orange, pulled up in a messy bun, brilliant green eyes, and freckles.

"H-hi." She said. Maggie poked her head up on the other side of the branch. "Man that took a lot of work… I'm Maggie." She stuck out her hand and the kid hesitantly shook it. "Nova." "Alex," she shook her hand and again Nova repeated, "Nova."

"You look shocked to see us up here…" Maggie said as she took in Nova's still shocked look. "I-it's just… n-no one's ever actually made it up here successfully before… Or really tried hard enough. I'm kinda impressed." They both grinned at her and Maggie hopped onto one of the branches so she could face her. "How did you get up here with your guitar? _That's_ impressive."

"It's not too hard. I made the foothold at the bottom. I got up here a few times and then practiced with the empty case, as precaution. Then I did it with the guitar in it. Eventually one of the facilitators bought me a rope so I could tie myself to the tree so I won't fall." She shifted to show them the rope around her waist. "It'd really hurt if I did fall with the rope on me, but it'd hurt more falling 16 feet." "Smart," Alex nodded in approval. "Yeah, well I'm not such a big fan of being off the ground…" Maggie said to her. "I'm not either. I'd probably throw up or pass out if I looked down. Once I tie myself in, I close my eyes or look up the entire time."

Alex raised her eyebrows, "so why climb the tree?" "Reasons." Very cryptic of her to say, but they both let it go. "What were you playing? It sounded really pretty." Alex asked. "Oh, really it was nothing."

Alex squinted her eyes at her. "How come you answer all my wife's questions but not any of mine?" "You ask the hard ones. But I just answered one of your questions." Maggie snorted at that. "She's got you there babe." Alex huffed but was rather amused by it all.

"I'd love to hear you sing and play… If you'd be willing to." Nova eyed them carefully. Alex and Maggie patient under her strong gaze. They could tell this was something she kept private, if the tree was any indication of that. Nova looked down at her feet. "How about we talk some more and you can decide while we talk?" Maggie offered. Nova nodded.

"It's nice being up here. There's a breeze that you don't get on the ground. It's nice to be away from everyone and watch clouds roll through the sky. It's my space that no one else comes to. The night sky is cool too, but we're not allowed out often to see it after dark." Nova looked at them with a light smile which they mirrored. "I personally prefer looking at the night sky," Alex said. "I used to do it with my dad a lot. I like looking up seeing the different constellations and galaxies. I like knowing there's others out there."

Maggie raised her hands in defense, "I like hikes, but I'm not a stare-at-the-sky kind of person."

"How long have you two been married?" She asked them. "Two years." Alex answered her. "And we've got two adorable fluffy dogs that act like teddy bears." Maggie added in. Nova was quiet for a second and then asked, "why do you want to adopt? Why not have your own kid?"

Alex and Maggie looked at each other. Maggie answered, "because we've got a lot of love to give and a loving and supportive family who knows more about loss than any family should. We know from experience that blood doesn't make a family. I've been alone, and I don't want anyone to feel like that, especially a kid. We'd bring everyone home if we could." Alex rubbed Maggie's back soothingly knowing how hard that was for Maggie to say to someone she'd just met.

"Thank you for being honest." Nova said to them. "If you still want to hear the song, I'll play it for you." Alex and Maggie nodded. Nova took a deep breath, hesitated, and started strumming.

The sweet melody of a sad song drifted from the strings.

Look at the stars

Look how they shine for you

And everything you do

Yeah they were all yellow

The lyrics of Coldplay's song Yellow had them mesmerized. The melody and conviction of Nova's singing made them feel what she was feeling. By the time she was finished, the couple felt privileged to have witnessed such raw emotion from this child they had just met.

Look at the stars

Look how they shine for you

And all the things that you do

" _Wow…"_ They both said at once. Nova had a heck of a voice, and it wasn't even as if she had done any crazy notes. It was the most beautiful and also the saddest thing they'd ever heard. I took a lot to convey a Coldplay song like that.

"That was amazing." Alex said in all seriousness. "Can I give you a hug?" The kid needed one after what she just did for them. Alex opened her arms and Nova shifted so she was resting in them and Maggie rubbed her back.

"Children, time to come in!" A voice called from down below. Nova pulled back from them despite wanting to stay in their arms forever and untied her rope. "It was nice meeting you both. You're nicest couple I've met. I like you both." She said this sadly and disappeared down the tree heading inside.

They looked at each other and nothing needed to be said. They just knew.


	2. Details, Files, and Another Visit: May

With some difficulty, they got down the tree to see Mr. Williams waiting for them. "I'm impressed." He said. "Why don't you follow me back inside so we can chat for a while?" They nodded and followed him.

Once they all took a seat, Maggie asked, "how long has Nova been here?" Mr. Williams hesitated. "She's been here for ten years. Her parents died in a house fire when she was three. The police had said they believed the parents had been doing drugs and were unaware at the time of the fire… The firemen were able to pull Nova out, but her parents were too far gone."

"Ten years?!" They said in unison, looks of shock on both of their faces. They glossed over the reasoning for her being orphaned when they heard him say ten years. "How could that kid have been here for ten years and no one wanted her? She's amazing and has the most beautiful voice!" Maggie said exasperated.

"Well… Wait… She sang for you?" Mr. Williams looked genuinely surprised. They both nodded. "She has the most pure and beautiful voice I've ever heard." Alex said.

"She hasn't sung to anyone in years. She goes up the tree and plays guitar to herself… The only time we hear her sing anymore is when she doesn't realize we can hear her. She must really like you two if she was comfortable enough and willing to do that." Mr. Williams sat back in his chair and pulled out Nova's file. He stopped before opening it. "Is Nova someone you're honestly and seriously considering adopting?" Alex and Maggie looked at each other before looking back at him and nodded. "Yes, we are seriously considering her." Alex said. "But why hasn't she been adopted already?"

Mr. Williams sighed. "It's sad to say this, but many people that come through here want to find a child that looks somewhat like them and overlook those that are different. So for her first few years, no one paid much attention when observing the children. She's always been reserved and quiet, which is fine, but that didn't help much when she interviewed with perspective parents."

Maggie was appalled. "People seriously wouldn't consider her because she's a redhead?" He nodded. "Unfortunately, not everyone that comes through these doors is as open minded and kind as the pair of you."

"So that's why she's been here for ten years? There's gotta be more than that. A kid isn't just a book you rent from a public library and return when you don't want it anymore." Alex said to him.

"There is more," he confirmed. "And yes, but many people have treated her as such… She's been with several foster families but none of them stuck. She's allergic to cats, so that rules out a lot of families as well… She got bit by a foster family's aggressive dog, and they chose the dog over her… She was with one family who's older kid kept tormenting her and wouldn't get along, so she came back again… She was diagnosed with Inattentive ADHD and dyslexia and the family she was with couldn't get her the help and medication she needed… And the most recent one was last year. The family she was with was very… _conservative_ … and wanted her to dress certain ways. She refused. They brought her back in less than a week… Some families weren't willing to accommodate her because she has allergies, exercise induced asthma, and is lactose intolerant. None of which you'd notice in her day to day life.

"She got suspended from school last year from hitting another student. She was being bullied and the teachers hadn't done anything about it so she took care of it. But it's in her file and many potential parents don't want to deal with that even if it was an isolated event. She's got a temper but she's also fiercely protective and very level headed.

"With all that being said, she's one of the sweetest kids I've ever met. She gets good grades and tries very hard. She even skipped a grade. All she wants and needs is to be loved and cared for. That child could excell so much given the right chance and the right home. We've done the best that we can do for her here, but this isn't a life Nova deserves.

"Two years ago, we all chipped in and bought her a guitar for her birthday. We sent her to the public school to be around kids her age and get away from here for a little bit. She's been here longer than a lot of the staff we have. We all care about her a lot, more so than the others because she's spent so much time here. We just want to see her go to a good home for good… You're honestly the first couple looking at adopting her and not just fostering.

"I personally think she wouldn't be in better care than with the pair of you. She's given up on the hope of being adopted. After she got returned the last time, it was right before she turned thirteen, and once you hit that age, people stop looking anymore and want a younger child. They don't want to deal with a teenager. She started going up the tree any time anyone comes to visit."

When Mr. Williams finished his long explanation, Maggie and Alex took a minute to mull over it all. Did this child have a squeaky clean résumé? No, but there are no major problems. She had a few medical things to deal with, but each thing was able to be dealt with in an easy manner. There was no reason to rule her out for something like that, that she couldn't control.

Maggie and Alex's first impressions of Nova were really good. They could each already see a little of themselves in her. The heart that child had in her was definitely noteworthy. And from what they had gathered from Mr. Matthews' speech was that this was a girl who stood up for herself and just needed people to look up to and trust and to love her…

"...Can we come back tomorrow to see her?" Alex asked him. He broke into a large smile. "Of course you may." He showed them the rest of her file. Nova Aspen Avery.

* * *

As promised, the couple returned the next day. They had discussed Nova a lot the night before and were pretty certain that they wanted to adopt her, even after only speaking with her for half an hour. Mr. Williams was definitely right, Nova did not deserve to be there and Alex and Maggie agreed that they wanted her. They were going to see her a few more times and hopefully sign the papers in the coming weeks.

"Just a heads up. No one has ever come back twice and she usually retreats into herself the day after someone visits…" They both nodded and headed over to the tree. There was no music being played today, but he had assured them that she was up there.

Today they had brought a rope to tie over the branch to climb up. Maggie went up first again and was quickly followed by Alex.

But this time when Maggie poked her head up to where Nova was, she didn't smile. The kid had her head buried in her knees with her arms pulled tightly around herself. Her shoulders were shaking as she cried quietly.

"Hey, Nova, what's wrong?" Maggie asked, concern lacing her voice. She picked her head up to see Maggie and Alex staring at her with worried expressions. Her face was flush and her eyes were red and puffy. She'd clearly been crying for a while. She kept taking hiccuped breaths as more tears fell.

"Y-you came b-back?!" She choked out. "Oh kid," Maggie said and pulled Nova into a hug. Nova latched on tight and sobbed into Maggie's shoulder. Alex pulled the both into a hug and her heart warmed when she felt Nova holding onto her shirt tightly in her fist.

They spoke soothing words to her and just let her cry it out. They swayed slightly, careful to not get unbalanced, calming her down some.

After some time, Nova's sobs quieted and her breathing slowed down back to almost normal. But she didn't let go of either of them. And so they stayed like that…

Maggie felt Nova's weight get heavier in her arms and looked down to find her asleep. "Uhhh, Alex?" Maggie whispered to her. "She's asleep…" "Poor kid. I think it's best if we just let her sleep…" Maggie nodded and shifted a little. "You okay with her weight on you like that?" "Yeah, I'm good now."

Not five minutes later, a voice called out, "children, time to come in!" Nova didn't wake up to it, so Alex put a hand on Maggie's shoulder. "I'll go talk to them and see if we can get some more time." Maggie nodded and watched as Alex made her way down the tree.

Mr. Williams was waiting at the door with one of the staff members. "Mr. Williams, is there any way we could get some more time with her? We got up there and found her crying. She's currently asleep in Maggie's arms."

He nodded. Taking into account that the couple was most likely going to adopt Nova, he made the exception this time. "I'm not surprised. She didn't have a good night last night… Lunch is at 12, in about an hour. It's sandwiches today. Nova will be able to show you where it is. If you and Maggie would like to stay for lunch, you may. Just let me know if you want ham or turkey." Alex smiled, "thank you very much for this. We'll both take turkey, but make sure Maggie's doesn't have any dairy on it please. She's lactose intolerant as well." He nodded, "of course. We'll see you soon."

Alex headed back up the tree. "He's agreed to let us stay up here with her and stay through lunch. Hope turkey is alright for your sandwich." "Yeah, that's good. Thanks." Maggie smiled at her. Nova sighed in her sleep and Alex rubbed her back and kissed Maggie. "This feels right," Maggie said to her and Alex's smile grew.

…

Forty-five minutes later, just as they were about to wake Nova up, she stirred in Maggie's arms. She sat back and rubbed her eyes yawning. "Hey there," Alex said in a soft tone. "Ughhh," was Nova's reply. She cradled her head in her hands. "Hi. Sorry about that… I try not to lose my cool like that in front of people… I just didn't expect you to be back… No one does after they read my file... How long was I out?"

"It's okay kiddo. About an hour… You feeling okay?" Maggie asked her. Nova hadn't pulled her hands away from her head yet. "My head is killing me." Alex's Dr. Danvers side kicked in and she reached forward to lift Nova's head up and feel her forehead. She moved her hand to her cheek after a few seconds. "You feel a little warm."

Nova looked exhausted. Her eyes were still slightly red and puffy. She looked around for a second and it dawned on her that if she had been asleep for an hour, it was past time to go in. "Relax," Maggie said. "Alex talked to Mr. Williams and he gave us extra time. But we should head in if we don't want to be late for lunch. I don't know about you, but I'm starving!" Nova smiled and nodded. It was the first time she had really smiled. "Oh, geez!" Alex said with exasperation, stopping her climb down. "She has dimples!"

Nova's smile disappeared. "A-are dimples bad?" She asked hesitantly. Maggie shook her head. "No, they're Alex's weakness! She can't say no to anything when dimples come out!" Maggie said giving her best dimpled smile. Nova laughed and followed them down the tree. "I'll have to teach you how to use them for full effect."

"Wow, you're tall for thirteen." Alex said when they got to the bottom. She was only a couple inches shorter than Alex. "Yeah, but I probably won't grow much more."

Maggie chuckled, "good. I can't have you being taller than Alex. I'd never hear the end of the short jokes." Nova smiled. It hadn't been said, but the hope inside her flared at there being a future with them.

"Seriously, though, I'm hungry. Which way to the food?"

Nova led them through the hallways until they came to the dining area. There was a table in the corner with three sandwiches labeled for them. Nova's had a disposable package with two Tylenol in it next to her sandwich. The staff knew her well enough to know that she'd have a headache. Alex and Maggie sat across from Nova and dug into their sandwiches.

After taking the medicine and a few bites of her sandwich Nova asked, "so what's your last name?" "Danvers." Maggie answered proudly. "I wanted to be a Danvers when I married Alex. The Danvers women are strong women. I had to add myself into that mix." Alex grinned proudly at her wife and bumped her with her shoulder. "Where do you work?" Today was sounding like it was Nova's day for questions.

"I work for the NCPD as a detective leading their science division." Maggie said to her. "And I work for the FBI and have two doctorate degrees. One is an MD and the other is a PhD in bioengineering." Nova raised her eyebrows, "that's impressive and cool. You're both kinda like superheroes." Alex laughed, "not kinda like superheroes, we totally are superheroes. We just don't have capes!" Nova and Maggie joined her in laughing.

"What kind of dogs do you have?" She asked after their laughing had quieted down. "We've got a German Shepherd and a Husky. They're three years old." Alex replied.

Maggie pulled out her phone and showed her a picture of the pair. It was her favorite picture of them. Both had their puppy eyes turned on looking at her phone with Kara sitting on the ground between them with puppy eyes too. Nova smiled. "Who's that?" She pointed to Kara. "That's my sister. Her name's Kara."

"Her shirt's my favorite color." Nova said to them. It was a brilliant turquoise color with a hint of aqua blue in it. "That's a very pretty color. You've got good taste." Nova smiled and finished up her sandwich.

"What's your favorite class in school?" Maggie asked her. "Science and art." "High five for science!" Alex cheered and they did indeed high five. Maggie shook her head and chuckled, "nerds."

"You're totally a nerd too babe, and you can't deny it. You literally lead the _science_ division. It's in your job description that you're a nerd." Alex countered with a smug smile.

"She makes a strong case there detective…" Nova said, pointing to Alex. Alex literally threw her head back and laughed at Nova's comment. Maggie couldn't even help but laugh at that too.

"Looks like you're all having fun over here." Mr. Williams said with a smile when he walked up to the table. Nova nodded. "Yes, sir." "Well I'm glad to hear that, but unfortunately, it's time for you to say goodbye and go finish your homework. It's the last week of school coming up tomorrow, so you're almost done." "Yes Mr. Williams." Nova nodded, smile slipping from her face. "I will be in my office down the hall to your left and the last room on the right when you're finished." He turned and left them to say their goodbyes.

Nova's eyes teared up immediately after he left. "Hey, hey, hey, no tears, okay? Come here." Alex said and stood opening her arms. Nova sniffled and wiped her eyes, coming into Alex's hug. "We'll be back to see you again next weekend." "We promise you that, Nova," Maggie added in. "And we don't make promises we can't keep."

Nova nodded and let go of Alex to hug Maggie. "Thank you for coming back." She whispered to the pair of them. Maggie hugged her a little tighter and then let her go. Maggie wiped away Nova's tears and smiled.

"Now go do your homework. School's important!" Alex told her. Nova chucked and waved, "bye."

Alex came up behind her wife and wrapped her arms around her, settling her head on her shoulder. "I've made my decision. Have you?" Maggie asked and turned her head slightly to see Alex. "Absolutely. Let's go tell Mr. Williams that that's our daughter."

* * *

Mr. Williams had agreed on their plan. They would visit again the following weekend both Saturday and Sunday to bond more with Nova. Provided things went smoothly as predicted, they would adopt her the weekend after that. And that's exactly what they did. They climbed up the tree and each day, Nova got more and more comfortable with them. Each time ended with her in tears, but were quickly wiped away by Alex and Maggie with reassurances to be back.

Every little piece that Nova shared about her life was like a gift to Maggie and Alex. They tended to do a majority of the talking when they met with her, but that was alright. Nova warmed up to them more and more and with time, she began speaking more.

Once you got to know her, she was an incredibly confident person with a quirky personality. There was a subtle, but dramatic flare to her that fit right along with them. It was something that didn't come out unless she was among people she trusted. The same went for both Maggie and Alex. They both had more carefree sides that came out when with friends and family.

She told them that she loves nature and would spend every moment outside if she could. She talked about school projects and the most recent art piece she did. She talked about her robotics class and the extent that she was able to make her robot do through programming. They were getting a clearer picture of just how creative and smart Nova really was.

Nova loved spending the forty-five minutes with them each weekend just as much as Maggie and Alex did. It was something they all looked forward to.

…

After speaking with Mr. Williams again, it was set that June 2nd would be the adoption day. All that was left was to get her room ready and for Nova to say yes to them…

* * *

Thoughts? Thanks for reading!


	3. Room Decorations and The Adoption: June

Maggie and Alex had kept it a secret from their family that they were seriously looking into adoption right now. They all knew it was only a matter of time, but they were unaware everything had been set into motion.

Naturally, when they told Kara, she was over the moon at getting to be an aunt. Eliza was equally excited and didn't criticise or question anything, much to Alex's delight.

The SuperFam, having graduated from being just the SuperFriends, was ecstatic at the last game night when they were told. Many hugs were given and congratulations. They couldn't wait to meet the newest Danvers. They all offered to help out in any way they could for the preparations that were being made, which came in handy when it came to doing Nova's room.

All week, Maggie and Alex prepared Nova's room for her. She would be coming home with them that Sunday.

With the help of Kara, they painted the room a light space grey with a deep aquamarine and turquoise accent wall behind the double bed. Kara painted a tree on the wall with the window that was similar to the one in their backyard and the orphanage's yard.

They put hanging shelves for books along one of the branches and put a new desk in the room by the window. Four photo frames were on the desk. One held a picture of Alex and Maggie on their wedding day. Another one was of Eliza, Alex, and Kara in Midvale from their last visit. The third was a massive group photo from one of their game nights with everyone in it. Winn, James, Lucy, Lena, Kara, Alex, Maggie, Sam, and J'onn, were all in it. The fourth frame was empty, waiting for a future picture of them with their soon-to-be daughter.

A comfy bright purple chair was placed in the corner as well as a dresser. A hidden bonus was that Kara and Alex painted the ceiling with glow in the dark paint of the night sky with complete accuracy. The best part was, it wasn't visible until the lights were turned off. They made sure it's color would blend in with the ceiling during the day.

They hung three strings of rope, one above the other, on one wall with clothespins. The clothespins held dozens of black and white polaroids of various cities around the world and of the SuperFam, courteous of Mr. James Olsen and Kara.

Above each of the strings hung white Christmas lights to light them up. It was a pretty awesome room if they do say so themselves.

They also got a rope ladder and tied it to their tree out back in case Nova wanted to climb it.

The final touches were added when big wooden letters were hung over Nova's headboard covered in splatter paint, that spelled out her name. N. O. V. A. And wooden letters were placed above her door, miniature versions of the letters above her bed.

A welcome party and game night was set for that Sunday night with all of the SuperFam at their house. Eliza Danvers was going to drive up from Midvale and stay in their guest room a few nights so she could get to know her granddaughter.

All that had to be done now was Nova agreeing to be a part of their family. Not that they had any doubt this would happen.

* * *

"I don't know about you, but I'm terrified. Even if we already know she's going to say yes, I'm still terrified." Maggie said to Alex as they walked up to Nova's tree. "Me too," Alex replied and held onto Maggie's hand tight.

It was all set. If Nova agreed, they'd all go inside and sign the papers with her there. Then they'd bring her home the next morning on Sunday.

They each took a deep breath and up the tree they went. They found Nova in her spot strumming away at her guitar.

"Hey!" She greeted them with a smile. "Hey there!" They both responded smiling as well. "How are you doing today?" Alex asked her.

"I'm good. I'm glad school's over now. I'm looking forward to not waking up extra early everyday. How are you both?" They looked at each other, "we're good." Alex responded. Maggie squeezed Alex's hand. "Nova, there's something we want to talk to you about."

Nova's smile slowly faded becoming very nervous at what this could be about.

"Alex and I have been talking a lot, and I know you've only met us a total of five times now, but we both agree, as well as Mr. Williams, that you would be a good fit for us in our home and as part of our family…" "So Nova," Alex chimed in. "If it's alright with you, we would like to adopt you."

Nova was silent and shocked and at a loss for words. "Really?" She asked them, voice watery from the onslaught of emotions. Alex and Maggie nodded, "really."

Nova threw herself into their arms and thankfully didn't knock them out of the tree. For the third week in a row, Nova found herself crying in their arms, this time from tears of joy and relief. Maggie and Alex even shed a tear. Not that they'd admit that out loud to anyone.

Nova pulled back and wiped her eyes with a laugh. "Thank you." "No, thank _you._ And we also have another important question to ask you." Maggie said. "Do you want to keep your last name as Avery, or change it to Danvers?"

"Danvers." Nova answered without hesitation. "I want to be a Danvers." Alex's smile was just as wide as the day Maggie said she wanted to be a Danvers too.

"We're both very glad to hear that, otherwise, we would have to change this." Maggie pulled out a blue rectangular box from the back pocket of her jeans. She handed it over to Nova.

Nova gasped when she opened it. Inside the box was a simple silver chain necklace with a silver bar in the middle. But on the silver bar was "Danvers" engraved. "Turn it over," Alex instructed her. She did, and on the other side of the silver bar was the word "Forever" engraved as well. Lena had made a call to a friend to get the process sped up for them so they'd get it in time.

Nova unclasped it and easily put it around her neck. She looked down at it and smiled, her hand coming up to run over the name.

"All that's left to do is sign the papers. We wanted to wait to do that until we talked to you." Alex told her. Nova just leaned back into their arms.

A thought dawned on Maggie at that moment. "Hey, you never answered us the first day… Why did you continue to come up here knowing you are terrified of heights." Not moving from their arms, Nova replied, "because a lot of people came here and weren't interested after reading my file. They'd talk all nice and not come back. I figured that if people weren't willing to put in the effort to come up here, then they would never be willing to put in the effort to love and take care of me. If they didn't care enough to come up, they didn't care enough period…"

"You young lady, are wise beyond your years. And that makes perfect sense now." Alex said to her.

"That, and I'm really like people watching. I think it's fascinating to watch interactions between people…" Nova paused before becoming serious again. "I'm glad you both came up the tree to meet me and put in the effort." "So are we, Nova, so are we." Maggie said to her.

"And since we're on the topic of heights, would it be alright if we went down the tree now? I still don't like being off the ground, and you're not a fan of heights. I was hoping we could cut the tree talk a little sooner today. And we've got some papers to go sign." Maggie smiled at her hoping she'd agree.

"Sure," she said and pulled away from the pair. They headed down the tree followed closely by Nova and her guitar. Maggie carried the guitar for her and they both wrapped an arm around her as they headed towards Mr. Williams' office.

"I see it went well." Mr. Williams said when the trio entered his office. He had a big smile on his face that was mirrored on all of theirs. Nova nodded her head, "yes!" She answered for all of them.

"Well then, step right on up Mrs. and Dr. Danvers." He said to them and held out a pen.

Hand in hand, Maggie and Alex walked up and each signed the documents, including the official name change for Nova.

When they stepped back, Mr. Williams stood up. "Congratulations Mrs. and Dr. Danvers on adopting your daughter!" He shook their hands and turned to Nova. "Congratulations Miss Danvers, you've been adopted!" Nova threw herself into his arms and he hugged her tightly. He had been waiting to say those words for so long, and Nova had waited to hear them for what had felt like forever.

She pulled back and hugged Maggie and Alex. "Thank you," she said again. "Now when can we leave? Today?" They all chuckled and Mr. Williams answered for her. "How about you go start packing and I'll talk to your parents? There's already a couple boxes waiting for you in your room to use." Nova gave a thousand watt smiled and grabbed her guitar, bolting towards her room.

"I know we discussed you coming back tomorrow morning to get her, but you have the option of taking her today. I really don't know if she'll sleep at all tonight if she stays here." Mr. Williams told them.

Honestly, they had anticipated this already. It wasn't coming as a surprise to them that she didn't want to stay another night unless she had to.

"Well, we didn't really have many plans for today… Alex?" Maggie asked her wife. "It's alright with me, babe. Let's bring our daughter home."

Mr. Williams nodded. "There's three things I want to give you before we catch up with her. First, is a copy of both the adoption and the name change." Which he quickly made with them standing there and handed them over.

"The next is a list of her instructions for her prescriptions." He handed them descriptions on a piece of cardstock. "There's a psychiatrist and therapist on there as well. She's gone to see the therapist Dr. Rebecca Berns a few times. She likes her a lot. Dr. Berns also does family sessions if that's something you'd be interested in."

"And the third is this." He pulled out a small book from his desk. "It's a photo book of Nova since she was born and onward… We tried to take pictures of her and put them in here. The police had brought the orphanage a few photos from her first, second, and early third year of life. We kept adding to them hoping one day to give it to her future family or to her as a keepsake if she reached the age of eighteen here. We've never shown it to anyone else because no one else looked to adopt her. She doesn't know it exists… Unfortunately there are no pictures of her with her birth parents. There were only a handful left intact from the fire and none had them in it."

Alex took it from him but didn't open it. This was something to be looked at later. She put it in her purse and thanked him. They followed him to Nova's room.

Nova had changed, now clad in jean shorts, sleeves rolled up on her flannel, and a backwards baseball hat. Alex and Maggie shared a knowing look, understanding now what Mr. Williams had said three weeks back about a foster family being too conservative with what Nova should wear. She wasn't a skirt or dress kind of girl.

Two boxes, one large duffle bag, one backpack, and one guitar, and that was all Nova had. The boxes held a few books, drawing supplies, and miscellaneous other items. Between the three of them, they managed to get it all out to Alex's black SUV.

Several of the staff members had come up to her to hug her goodbye. As glad as Nova was to be leaving, this was also all she had ever truly known, and that was hard and scary.

Mr. Williams came outside with them and happily took a photo of the new family with the brick walls in the background. Each of them were grinning ear to ear.

Final hugs were given, and off they went.

"We can send Kara to the grocery store, right?" Alex asked Maggie as they finished loading the car. "I'd say yes seeing as she is responsible for cleaning our house out." Alex nodded. She hopped into the driver's seat and Maggie gave Nova the front seat insisting that she get to see everything.

"So Nova, we've got another thing to give you." Alex reached into the glove compartment and pulled out a new iPhone. She handed it to her. "You'll find our numbers as well as all of our family and friends. There's a welcome party tomorrow where you'll meet all of them."

Nova was still staring wide eyes at the phone in her hand. "I already sent you the picture we just took, and there's a bunch of games downloaded already." Maggie rubbed her arm from the back seat trying to bring Nova out of her shock. "Thanks," Nova whispered. "You're welcome," Maggie said to her.

They talked about random things as they drove. About thirty minutes later, they were pulling up to their house. "Welcome home," they both said at once. Nova got out and took in the house before her. It certainly wasn't small, that's for sure. It was probably the biggest house she'd ever been to let alone lived in.

She went to get her boxes, but Alex and Maggie stopped her. "We'll get them after you tour the house."

Entering, they were greeted by their two very enthusiastic and massive dogs. They approached Nova cautiously, but gave her plenty of kisses as soon as she scratched both of their heads. She took her shoes off at the door as they started her tour of the house.

Living room, kitchen, dining room, garage, downstairs bathroom, laundry room, office space, basement/game area, and then on to the upstairs. They kept Nova's room door shut wanting to show her everything before she got to hers.

Guest room, upstairs bathroom, master bedroom, master bathroom, and finally they came to a stop at her closed door.

"And this is your room," Alex said and stepped back allowing Nova to open her door for the first time.

Nova's eyes went wide as she took it all in. She walked over to the lit up wall with polaroids and looked at each photo, all thirty six of them. She walked to her closet and opened the door, stepping in. It was a walk in closet, so it was rather spacious. After spinning in a circle, she came back out and ran her hand over the new dresser drawers. She went to her desk and looked up at the shelf above it with a few scattered books. She looked at the four photo frames on the desk.

Moving on, she went to one of bedside tables and flipped on the lamp. She sat down on the bed facing away from her parents and took it all in. Luna and Gertrude hopped up on the bed and sniffed around, choosing to lay by her.

"We'll go get your stuff while you take it all in." Maggie said and they left the room. Nova looked around from her spot on _her_ bed, in _her_ room, next to _her_ two dogs, in _her_ new house. Overwhelmed was an understatement right now. It was all so perfect and so much more than she'd ever dreamed of.

Nova got up and picked up the picture frames from her desk and sat in the middle of her bed. She traced the edges of the frames gently taking in each photo. This was _her_ family. Finally, finally, _finally_ , she had parents and a family. A loving one at that. She hadn't even met the rest of them yet but she knew they'd be everything and then some. Nova liked to consider herself observant, and from what she'd already seen from Alex and Maggie, she knew there was more to this family than blood. Maggie had said it once and Nova believed her completely. They didn't need to verbally explain it. They showed it in everything that they did.

A tear dripped down onto the glass of the frame and she quickly wiped it dry with the edge of her flannel. She looked up and was greeted by the furry face of Luna who carefully licked away the tears on Nova's cheeks. Tears of happiness and disbelief. Ten years it had taken her to get here. Ten very, _very_ long years.

She buried her face in her hands and cried for the lost time with them and for her younger self. She cried for all the nights she cried to sleep, for all the days she was returned, for all the mocking and bullying, for all the feelings of unwantedness, and for the days of feeling unloved. She cried as she felt arms wrap around her and she leaned into them. _Warm, safe, loving, open_ arms.

"Thank you for giving me a family," she managed to get out. The arms tightened and her other mother joined them. "You're welcome, Nova, forever and always."

* * *

Thoughts?


	4. Our Family is a Little Unique

Thank you for the comments. I'm glad to hear that you are all enjoying this!

Guest: Nova will be finding out in this chapter just how cool her new family is!

* * *

"Okay, so there's a few things we want to talk to you about." Alex said to Nova when her tears stopped. "First things first, your aunts are coming for dinner, Kara and her girlfriend Lena. They're honestly here so often, you might think they live here too."

Maggie added in, "they might only be girlfriends right now, but really it's only a matter of time before one of them proposes."

Alex nodded in agreement. She honestly didn't know what was taking them so long. "And your grandmother, my mother, is coming as well." Nova nodded.

"Second, is pasta and meat sauce okay for dinner?" Maggie asked. "Yes. Pasta is my favorite actually."

"Great!" Maggie smiled and sent off a quick text.

"Third," Alex began and took a deep breath. "I don't work for the FBI… That's just what we tell people when they ask. I'll show you the badge and everything, but I work for a government black-ops group that technically doesn't exist… It's called the DEO: Department of Extranormal Operations. I am the deputy director, and we deal with things not of this Earth and all things weird… I'm still a federal agent since I work for the government. But to the outside world, I work for the FBI. And I still have my two doctorate degrees."

Alex waited for Nova's response. She had a thoughtful look on her face and opened and closed her mouth a few times before finally saying, "I'm okay with that…" She said with a tentative nod. "Wait… does this mean you work with Supergirl?"

Maggie chuckled, "may I?" She asked Alex. Alex gestured her hand towards Nova, "be my guest."

"Nova, your Aunt Kara is Supergirl." Nova's jaw hit the floor. "Yup," Alex nodded backing Maggie up. "And she's dating, but practically already married to, the one and only Lena Luthor. So your aunts are Supergirl and Lena Luthor." Alex said it so casually as if she wasn't dropping massive news on her.

Nova's brain was trying to process all of this. "...Wow." She breathed out. "Yep," Alex nodded.

Nova paused for a few seconds before turning to Maggie. "You're still a detective for the NCPD, right?" Maggie laughed, "yes, I still work for the NCPD as a detective. I told you the Danvers women are strong women."

Alex nodded, "and your grandmother also has a doctorate in bioengineering but specializes in astrobiology."

"Wow…" Nova said again. She really didn't have anything else to say other than, "that's impressive."

"It's a whole family of nerds," Maggie teased and Alex playfully shoved her with her shoulder.

Normally that wouldn't have done anything but earn a playful shove back at Alex, but Maggie was sitting just a little too close to the edge of the bed and fell right off with a squeal. Alex wholeheartedly laughed, that is until Maggie got up and tackled her off the bed. Alex made a similar noise that Maggie did and the dogs remained unfazed. Nova figured that things like this happened often since the dogs didn't even react.

Peels of Alex's laughter and squeals filled the room. Nova leaned over the side of the bed to see Maggie pinning Alex down and tickling her mercilessly. "Alright, alright! I surrender!" Maggie stopped and kissed Alex's cheek before getting up triumphantly and dramatically dusting herself off. Nova smiled watching them. Their love was clear and Nova couldn't be happier to be with them.

Alex cleared her throat and smoothed out her hair. "Okay, now that that's over with…" They both rejoined Nova on the bed. "There's one more thing we want to address." Alex said before letting Maggie take the reins.

"We want you to feel free to call us whatever you feel comfortable with… Whether that's by our names Alex and Maggie or if you want to call us your moms, it's up to you. We don't want to pressure you into picking one and sticking with it. We're your parents now, and your our daughter. That doesn't change based on what you decide." Maggie said to her.

"Oh…" This thought had honestly never occurred to her. Nova had never been in this situation before.

"And really, if you want to call us Maggie and Alex, that's fine. You don't have to call us Mom or Mama, or whatever…" Alex reiterated taking Nova's silence as a sign of being uncomfortable.

"No, it's not that. I do… You are my parents now… It's just… Well…" Nova took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She looked down at her crossed legs when she mumbled, "I've never actually called anyone that before…"

Nova would've stopped talking there, but her brain was going a mile a minute so she started rambling. "I mean… well I guess I did when I first started talking, but it's not like… I don't really… I've never… I don't have memories of it and… The few times I've talked about them, I've always just called them my… I don't… It's just… I really do…"

Alex took her out of her ramblings when she put a hand on each shoulder. "Easy Nova, breathe." She did as she was told and looked up at their concerned looks. "Sorry, I can't help it… The random thoughts and rambling…"

"It's okay," Alex said to her. Maggie agreed, "really, it's okay." Nova nodded. "I want to, I really do… Call you both that… It's just weird for me… Because… Well… I've never called someone 'mom' before that's actually… well… alive?..." They nodded understandingly. "That's sounds creepy and morbid." Nova shook the thought out of her head.

Alex had taken her hands off of her shoulders and Maggie was now rubbing her back. Nova leaned into the touch and snuggled into her side. She was never this snuggly and tactile with people, but she couldn't help it with her moms. They made her feel safe.

Nova took a deep breath and continued. "So what do you want me to call you both? When I am ready… Do you care who's one or the other? You can't both be called 'Mom'… That's too confusing…" Nova thought for a second and Alex and Maggie let her work it out. "Alex, is it okay if you're Mom… And Maggie, is it okay if you're Mama?" Nova looked at each of them as she said it. Maggie and Alex smiled at each other and Alex dove into them to join the hug.

A knocking at the door downstairs pulled them apart and sent Gertrude and Luna flying out of the room towards the door barking. "Your Aunt Lena is impatient. She got that from Kara…" Alex said before leaving the room.

"We're lucky that the whole welcome party hasn't moved to tonight. I'm sure they're all trying really hard not to come over right now to meet you." Maggie told her. Nova took a few deep calming breaths.

"You okay?" Maggie asked. Nova nodded, "Yeah, I'm just not fond of meeting new people. I'm not good with small talk… Or really good in any social situation…"

"Well, if it helps, just remember they're all wackos. None of us are anything close to normal. And they just want you to be comfortable around them. Everyone that comes to meet you today and tomorrow would literally drop everything and come to you in an instant if you needed them. Everyone's going to love you because we love you. And if they don't, most of them are too scared of Alex and me to feel otherwise." Nova chuckled and leaned into Maggie for another hug.

"Ready to go meet your first aunt?" Nova nodded into Maggie's shoulder and followed her out of the room.

Nova stayed behind Maggie as she shyly walked behind her. "Hey," Maggie greeted Lena with a smile and a hug. "Where's your partner in crime?" Lena was here alone and this isn't something Kara would want to put off.

"Oh, she flew down to drive up with Eliza as soon as she heard. They should actually be here within the next half hour." Lena's eyes went wide and she covered her mouth realizing the slip. "Please tell me you told her already." Lena's glanced over to where Alex and Nova were standing. "She knows." Maggie confirmed. Lena let out a sigh of relief. Kara being Supergirl wasn't exactly something Lena wanted to accidentally slip to Nova before her parents got to talk to her about it.

Alex put her hands on Nova's shoulders again and guided her towards Lena. "Nova, this is Aunt Lena." Alex backed up giving them room.

"Hi," Nova whispered nervously to her.

"Oh darling come here, I promise I don't bite!" Lena chucked and opened her arms. Nova hesitated before stepping into the hug. She was surprised to find the hug warm and inviting despite the hard exterior present in most photographs of her. Business Lena Luthor was nothing like the Lena Luthor standing in front of her.

Lena released her, "it's a pleasure to finally meet you Nova. Those two haven't stopped talking about you since they met you!" Nova blushed slightly and smiled.

Maggie and Alex took over the conversation, letting Nova off the hook and they headed to the kitchen to start preparing the meal for tonight. They both knew Nova needed her own time to warm up. If they've learned anything about the girl in the last few weeks, it's that she needs to do things at her pace so she feels comfortable and not pressured.

Alex came out of the kitchen not long after having entered and found Nova sitting on the sofa petting Gertrude. "Have you gone out back yet?" Alex asked her. "No," Nova shook her head. Alex waved her towards the sliding glass doors. "Follow me."

"I always get kicked out of the kitchen," Alex continued as they stepped outside. "Maggie said she didn't want to have to buy more smoke alarms…" Nova laughed at that. "You know, cooking isn't that hard…" Nova said and glanced over towards Alex. She was greeted with Alex's squinted eyes and pursed lips. "Yeah, well, whatever," and she playfully nudged her daughter lightly.

Nova looked up when they got close to the tree and saw the rope ladder. She looked questioningly over to Alex.

"I know you don't like heights, but you've been climbing the tree at St. Francis for a while and we wanted you to have a safer option up our tree in case you want to get up there to escape for a little while. And there's a second rope up there for you to use as your safety rope." Alex explained to her.

Nova took a step towards Alex, leaning into her, and Alex put her arm around Nova's shoulder. "It's perfect, thank you." Nova said to her.

After a moment, they went back and sat under the cover of their back porch on the outdoor sofa. Clouds were starting to roll in for one of National City's classic summer afternoon thunderstorms. But they still had some time before they would have to go in. They could enjoy the breeze and fresh air for now.

Nova took in a deep breath and let it out slowly, smiling. "I love the smell of summer rain." Alex hummed, "yeah, there's nothing quite like it."

Alex had let the dogs out to run around the spacious yard. Every once in a while Gertrude or Luna would bring a ball over for one of them to throw and then bring it back for them. Again, Nova couldn't quite believe that this was really happening. It was so domestic and natural. She was half expecting a faculty member to come around the corner at any moment to tell her visiting hours were over. Not only that, but she was honestly scared to go to bed and wake up to find that she was just dreaming all of this.

The yard, the house, the parents, the dogs, the _family_. It really was what her dreams were made of and then some.

Nova snapped out of her trance when Luna pawed at her leg. Apparently Nova hadn't realized she was there and was impatiently waiting for the ball to be thrown again. With a chuckle, Nova picked it up and tossed it for her, wiping her hand on her shorts. Nova just felt at peace here.

Nova was thinking that maybe all of her suffering had finally paid off. All those years of loneliness are over. She was finally getting what she deserved. She'd put in enough years of it to deserve it at the very least.

After another thought, Nova got up. "Stay right here," she told Alex and bolted inside. She ran up to her room and grabbed her guitar out of its case. She picked up her guitar strap and headed back down the stairs and outside again. She plopped down next to Alex and folded her feet up onto the sofa cushion.

After putting the strap on the guitar, she put it around herself and strummed a few times. She looked up at Alex and grinned. Quickly, beautiful music sounded through the air. The screen door was in and Maggie and Lena could hear the music through to the kitchen.

"It's not as good on the guitar as it would be on a ukulele, but I tried to modify it. That's the next instrument I'm hoping to tackle." Nova said as she continued strumming the intro.

Rain had started falling from the sky, making a cool sound off the roof accompanying her strumming.

With lyrics pulled up on her new phone, Nova started playing and singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." But it wasn't the _Wizard of Oz_ version. It was the version by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole so it was upbeat and light hearted.

Somewhere over the rainbow, way up high

And the dreams that you dream of, once in a lullaby

Somewhere over the rainbow, bluebirds fly

And the dreams that you dream of, dreams really do come true

Alex also joined in for the chorus, complimenting Nova's voice beautifully. They both had wide smiles as they continued.

Someday I'll wish upon a star

Wake up where the clouds are far behind me

Where trouble melts like lemon drops

High above the chimney top

That's where you'll find me

Somewhere over the rainbow, bluebirds fly

And the dream that you dare to

Why, oh why can't I?

Lena and Maggie couldn't resist coming out to listen to them. They sat in the seats on the opposite of the table and sofa, swaying along to the music. Maggie slid out her phone and took a photo of Alex and Nova and their smiles. They both looked so happy and at peace with everything. That really solidified their choice in that moment. Nova just fit in so perfectly with them, more so than Maggie thought possible this soon after adopting her.

Nova was finishing up the song when Luna and Gertrude howled with the music, causing them all to burst into laughter. Nova leaned down and gave both of them a kiss on their heads. Lena, Maggie, and Alex all clapped for Nova and Nova took a hilariously dramatic bow from where she was sitting, causing them all to laugh again.

"Well this is going to take karaoke nights to a whole new level… She can even out-sing Winn and Kara." Lena said to Maggie and Alex.

"Oh… I'm n-not much of a… uh… a karaoke person… T-too many people watching…" Nova stuttered through her sentence to Lena. She didn't do audiences. She only played and sang to people when she felt comfortable enough to do so.

Trying to each Nova's uneasiness, Alex slid over the small distance to Nova and put and arm around her rubbing her arm. "That's alright. What's important is that _we all know_ you could run laps around Winn and Kara, and that _we_ get the privilege of hearing your beautiful voice." Nova smiled up at Alex and leaned into her when Alex put a kiss on her head.

Snuggling, cuddling, feeling completely at ease, all of these things were new to Nova. She had never felt so supported and safe with people like the way she did with Alex and Maggie. They made her smile and laugh and in return, she tried her best to make them smile and laugh.

Nova sighed. If she was being honest, she was completely exhausted already and it was barely six o'clock. Nova rubbed at her eyes, trying to rub away the exhaustion. She really wanted to lay down, but she was enjoying their time outside too much to ruin it by going in.

The decision was made for her, however, when she yawned, unable to stifle it. "You okay, Nova?" Maggie asked, a look of concern coming across her face. Nova nodded. Alex rubbed her arm, "we could always go in and you could take a nap before everyone else gets here. Or maybe you can start unpacking your things?"

Nova sighed, "I was hoping to stay out here a little longer… We were having so much—" Nova was cut off by the sound of thunder cracking above their heads causing her to jump.

"That's fine," Nova agreed willingly, now awake. She always thought thunder was too loud and wasn't a fan of being outside in it. She got up and headed inside followed by the three adults. None of them were going to comment on her jumpiness. If she wanted to bring it up, that's something that Maggie and Alex would let her do. A little nervousness around thunder wasn't something that needed to be explained.

"Do you want some help unpacking?" Alex asked her when they stepped back inside. "Umm," Nova said as she thought about it, "sure. I'd like some help." So Alex joined her while Maggie and Lena went back to the kitchen.

"If you could do that box with 'books' written on top, that'd be great." Nova said to Alex when they got to her room.

When Alex opened it up, she noticed that there weren't many books in it. Nova had spent ten years in an orphanage after all, so she shouldn't have expected Nova to have as many books as she did growing up.

There were maybe twelve novels in the box, five sketchbooks, and four well-used notebooks/journals. Alex put the notebooks and sketchbooks on Nova's desk and began arranging the books on the hanging shelves.

Nova pulled out a small CD player and scanned over her disks before pulling one out and hitting play. Nova hummed to her music absentmindedly as she put her clothing into her dresser and closet. It helped to drown out the sound of the thunder outside.

Alex was intrigued by the music that was playing. You could tell a lot about a person by what they listened to. It was a mixed CD that had a few Indie artists on it as well as some big names like Green Day, Train, Coldplay, Carrie Underwood, Lady Gaga, and some more. It was geniously mixed together and flowed well. Nova had a wide taste when it came to music. There was even a show tune on there.

"What are the different colored journals for?" Alex asked Nova when her curiosity got the best of her. "Oh," Nova put the last shirt on a hanger. "The purple one is for regular therapy. Dr. Berns suggested that I should write some of my feelings down and anything that I specifically want to bring up during sessions. The green one is for the psychiatrist. I'm supposed to track how I feel with the meds I'm on so she knows if they need to be adjusted. The blue one is for songs and just miscellaneous things. And the black one is my own personal one: gratitudes, feelings, thoughts, just whatever's on my mind." Alex nodded thoughtfully and put all four of them into the first drawer on the right side of Nova's desk. Having the different notebooks was a good idea.

The doorbell rang just then, and Nova's eyes got really wide. "They're going to love you. You don't need to worry about that." Alex told her with a warm and reassuring smile. Nova nodded hesitantly. Alex came up and hugged her, immediately making Nova feel better. Nova was discovering quickly just how safe she felt when in Alex's and Maggie's arms. She noticed it before, but it was clear now.

"Now come on, let's go meet your Super Auntie!" Nova chuckled at the name. "Seriously, she can barely contain herself with excitement. I've been getting nonstop texts all day from her. I'm honestly surprised she's not up here already."

Nova walked quietly behind Alex, silent on the carpeted floor in her socks. Her heart pounded a little harder as they turned the corner to meet Kara and Eliza. She was going to meet _Supergirl_.

Kara was practically vibrating in place. Actually, as Nova looked closer at her, she noticed Kara was actually _floating_. Not high, but definitely a solid two inches off the ground.

Alex stepped forward and put her hands on Kara's shoulders, guiding her back to the ground. "Gentle," Alex whispered to her at only a volume Kara could hear.

Kara nodded almost imperceptibly and stepped forward. "Hi Nova, I'm your Aunt Kara," Kara said as gently and calmly as she could.

Nova looked rather starstruck at the moment. She was having trouble processing that she was standing in front of Supergirl just as much as she was having trouble with picturing the person in front of her as an invincible alien. "H-hi." Alex made a mental note to talk to Maggie later to see if she noticed how Nova seemed to stutter anytime she met someone new.

"Can I have a hug?" Kara asked softly and opened her arms, a hopeful expression on her face. Nova nodded, and slowly stepped forward until she was in her arms. The hug was surprisingly gentle for the girl of steel, but felt just as safe and warm as her new parents'.

"Sweetie, I want to say hello too," Eliza said, putting a hand on Kara's back. Maggie stepped up to Alex's side and entwined their hands. They were relishing in their family meeting their daughter.

Kara reluctantly pulled away from the hug so Eliza could step in. "Hi sweetie," Eliza said in the hug. "I'm your Grandma Eliza. You can call me anything: Eliza, Grandma, Nana, Grandma Eliza, Dr. Danvers… Maybe not Dr. Danvers," she backtracked after pulling away from the hug with a chuckle.

"I like Nana… I-if that's alright?" Nova asked hesitantly. Eliza beamed at her, "Nana is perfect."

Eliza stepped up and hugged Lena, Maggie, and Alex. "How was the drive, Mom?" Alex asked her. "It wasn't too bad. But at one point Kara tried to convince me that she should just fly me and the car here so we could get here faster…"

"What? I was excited!" Kara said defensively as she returned from the kitchen. She had half a dinner roll in her mouth already. No one had even realized that she had drifted that way.

"Little Danvers, you're supposed to wait until we all sit down at the table," Maggie scolded her sister-in-law with equal parts amusement and annoyance. Nova chuckled at her Aunt's sheepish look while she was trying to hide a second dinner roll behind her.

"Sorry, Maggie…" Kara paused before asking with a hopeful expression, "everybody ready for dinner?" Everyone chuckled and nodded, getting the dining room set up for all six of them.


	5. Dinner, Pajamas, and New Faces

Dinner had gone well. Nova was astonished at the amount of food Kara could consume. Five platefulls disappeared as if they were nothing… That was something that she was going to have to get used to. She chimed into the conversation every once in awhile, content to just observe everyone's interactions. She was grateful that no one pushed her to talk or asked too-difficult-to-answer questions.

Now they were all curled up in the living room in pajamas picking the movie for the night. Everyone was staying over since there were two guest bedrooms and wanted to spend as much time with Nova getting to know her.

"You get to pick tonight's movie," Kara said, coming over to where Nova was sitting. She held out her hand for Nova to take before guiding her over to the large selection of movies. The Danvers, _her mothers_ , had a lot of movies.

She skimmed them all quickly. There were a lot she had never heard of and some that she had been wanting to see. But she hadn't picked a new one. She went with her favorite. It was her first movie night, afterall, and that first movie choice would be an important one.

Nova pulled out a DVD and handed it to Kara. "This one, please." Kara smiled when she looked at it. "This is one of my favorites too."

Nova went and sat back down while Kara put it in. "What are we watching?" Maggie asked when Nova sat back down between her and Alex. They were sharing their own bowl of popcorn that was popped on the stove with a little added salt, no butter. Everyone else had a microwaveable bag with movie butter.

"The Wizard of Oz."

…

"Did you know that it's been theorized that Galinda the Good Witch is actually the most kinniving and evil witch?" Lena chimed in during the flower field scene.

"Lee, really? She's like a saint!" Kara objected. They would've continued like this back and forth like they did sometimes with this movie, but Nova surprised them all by chiming in.

"No, she's right." Nova said, and all eyes turned to her. Everyone's faces were a mix of shock and amusement. "Aunt Lena's right… In this story specifically, Galinda uses Dorothy for her own agenda. She's essentially a pawn for her and has no regard for what Dorothy wants."

Lena's grin was huge. She finally had someone on her side. Nova reached over and paused the movie and continued explaining.

"Galinda was the one that brought the house to Munchkin land and dropped it on the witch, who in the original story, was actually one of her three sisters. She then proceeded to have the munchkins throw a literal parade in celebration of the witch's death. The Wicked Witch of the West was the rightful owner of those ruby slippers. It was her last keepsake of her sister. Galinda then put the shoes on Dorothy without her knowledge or consent and made them untouchable but refused to tell Dorothy of the power they possessed.

"All of this eventually lead to Dorothy killing the Wicked Witch and Galinda ends up with the shoes anyway. So the protagonist is really the victim of the entire story.

"Galinda gets everything she wants while manipulating everyone. But what you don't learn in this is that the Wicked Witch had been an outcast all her life having been born with green skin. She had no friends, she was treated horribly, but was also a genius and a large activist for animals."

Nova then continued on explaining the nuances of the musical to further prove her point. When she finished her explanation, she was met with silence.

"Well… Uh… Um… Wha…" Kara sputtered after a few seconds. "Lee, is that all true?" Kara asked.

"I'm afraid so, darling. Nova's right with all of it."

Kara pouted. "Well now how am I supposed to watch this movie every again?"

"Easy," Nova supplied. "I actually hate it when people overanalyze stories, but in this case, it's three stories occupying the same story line with changes to them. It's kinda like the multiverse theory if you think about it. That, and-"

"Hold up," Alex cut her off. "How do you know about the multiverse theory?"

Nova shrugged, "I've heard people talk about it before. Plus, when you're a foster kid or orphan, people tend to forget that you exist or that you are in the same room. I've heard about a lot of things because of that. And I had a very cool science teacher one year who mentioned it. I did my own research on it last summer for fun and just for something to do… I'm right though, right?"

Alex nodded, "yeah, you are right. That's rather impressive."

Lena got up suddenly and came over and gave Nova a hug. Nova tensed at first but hugged back. She glanced over at Maggie and Alex confused and then at Kara. Kara had some sort of _knowing_ look, but Nova still wasn't sure what was going on.

"Sorry," Lena whispered to her, still hugging her. "It's just… I know what that feels like… To feel nonexistent. And it's one of the worst things a kid can feel. I grew up that way, and I'm so glad you don't have to feel like that anymore." Now Nova got it. So she held on as long as Lena needed.

Lena let go not too long afterwards. In all honesty, she still wasn't quite the hugging person. The Danvers were working on that with her, but it would take a little more time.

"Not to ruin the moment or anything," Kara started, trying to lighten the room, "but how am I supposed to watch this movie now?"

"Oh, right!" Nova said, sitting up again looking at her. "What I do is watch the movie, and just all movies in general, for the beauty of the movie itself. I watch with a clear and open mind. I absorb the movies rather than over think them. There's a lot more to movies like this than the originals they were based off of. Just sit back and relax. Enjoy it for what it is. Overanalyzing can be done after the fact, but never during."

Kara sighed before cracking a smile. "I guess that's a good enough reason to watch it…" Everyone chuckled, and Nova hit the play button.

…

Nova was falling asleep on both Maggie and Alex by the time the movie was over. She's pretty sure she slept through part of it in the middle too. She vaguely remembers waving goodnight to everyone while being ushered upstairs.

Pajamas already on, brushed teeth, and ten minutes later, Nova was more awake than she was during the movie. She didn't want to wake up to find this had all been a dream. Sensing Nova's anxiety, Maggie and Alex came and sat on either side of her bed.

"We've got one more surprise for you," Maggie said before getting up and turning the lights off. She kept the door cracked open slightly so a little hall light could come in, but closed enough to reveal the surprise.

Nova's mouth dropped open as she looked all over her ceiling. What had been originally a plain white color, was now lit up like the night sky. "It's completely accurate to what you would see on our roof. It even has Krypton… Well, where it would be. Kara wanted it to go up there too…" Alex explained to her. "... Do you like it?" She asked hesitantly.

Nova nodded and smiled. "It's perfect, thank you." She sat up and hugged Alex and then Maggie. But the anxiousness in her was starting to rise again.

"You know if you need anything tonight," Maggie began, "and I mean _anything_ , you know where to find us. We'll keep our door open for you. Eliza and Kara and Lena are staying in the two guest rooms, and you can go to them too if you need to… We'll be here when you wake up."

Nova nodded slowly. She rolled over so she was on her stomach, feeling herself falling asleep against her will. Alex rubbed slow circles around her back. She felt loved.

* * *

That was the most solid sleep Nova had gotten in a long time. She woke up slightly confused as to where she was, but it all came flooding back leaving a smile on her face. She felt refreshed, yet still rather grumpy because it was morning. She was never a morning person.

She leaned over and squinted at the clock. It read 8:12am. Her body was still used to waking up at school times. Honestly, she was glad she had been able to sleep as late as she had today.

Nova let out a big yawn and stretched, rubbing at her eyes. Normally, she'd try to stay in bed later, but she wanted to get up and be with her family more than get an extra hour of sleep. So with a sigh, she put on her glasses and headed downstairs. Typically she wore contacts, but in the mornings she never put them in until she was more awake.

Maggie had suggested that they put her medications downstairs in the kitchen since she took them with breakfast, so that's where she headed.

She found Maggie in the kitchen making pancakes with Kara and Eliza. "Hey, good morning, kiddo! Did you sleep well?" Maggie asked with a smile. Nova nodded and walked into her hug without saying a word.

Maggie chuckled, "I've got another not-morning person on my hands don't I?" She chuckled again when Nova nodded her head against Maggie's shoulder in the hug.

"Pancakes okay for breakfast?" Nova nodded again but paused when she thought of what goes in it. "Um, are you using regular milk in them?" Mr. Williams had said to her that all of her medications and specific needs would be covered when he talked to the Danvers, but she wanted to be sure.

"I wasn't going to for yours," Maggie reassured her. "We did for the other ones, but we've got two other types of milk. One is almost like regular milk, it's just lactose free. The other option is almond milk. We keep all three in the house because I can't do dairy either."

Nova sighed in relief. At least she knew that she wasn't going to be a burden with that since Maggie was lactose free too. That had been a big concern for her. Nova never wanted to feel like a burden, especially because of something she had no control over.

"Almond milk is fine, thank you."

Maggie squeezed her tight and kissed her head before releasing her. "Apple or orange juice?"

"Apple," Nova said before yawning again.

Maggie rubbed her back, "I'll bring it in to you. You go curl up with Alex."

Nova nodded and headed to the living room. She put her glasses down on the coffee table and picked up a pillow, putting it on Alex's lap. Before Alex could even say "good morning" or ask about the pillow, Nova flopped down and curled up, head facing in to Alex's stomach.

Alex chuckled as her daughter… _her daughter_ … nuzzled into her. "Well good morning to you too!" Nova grunted in response.

"You should rest up while you can. Tonight's going to be chaotic and exhausting when the party starts."

"What else are we doing today?" Nova mumbled into Alex's shirt and the pillow. She was already starting to drift off to sleep again.

Alex sighed and put her coffee on the table next to the sofa. "Well, it's up to you. We have several options. Option one is that we just chill around the house. We could walk around the neighborhood, stay on the sofa, whatever you want… Option two is that we spend the day wandering around National City. We could go to the park and get ice cream or gelato or something… Option three is that we show you around L-Corp and CatCo."

Lena cut in just then to add, "the cool tour, not the standard one that groups get." She had been sitting in the adjacent chair reading the newspaper with her morning cup of coffee.

"That's right," Alex nodded. "The cool tour involves the CEO offices and the parts that require top clearance for… Option four is that we show you where I work and where Maggie works… Option five is we go check all four places out and grab lunch while we're out… Option six is we go to Lena's penthouse and swim… Option seven is that we literally do just about anything you want."

Nova looked up at Alex with relatively wide eyes. That was a lot of options she was just presented with. She honestly wanted to do everything on that list. She wanted to see it all of it with them.

And Alex being Alex, could see all of that written across Nova's face. "We don't have to do them all today. There's plenty of time to do all of it throughout the week. Maggie and I are only on call for emergencies for the next two weeks."

Nova honestly felt a little guilty about them taking that much time off, but she really appreciated it. She was trying to embrace the idea that these things that the Danvers were doing, that her _parents_ were doing, were because they wanted her to feel comfortable and adjust well to her new life.

"Umm…" Nova thought after a second. "I really want to see it all… But, can I see where you and Maggie work and then go swimming at Aunt Lena's, please? I want to save seeing where Aunt Lena and Aunt Kara work for another day." Alex nodded, and Maggie agreed too, coming in with Nova's breakfast. "You bet we can, kid. Sit up."

Maggie dragged the coffee table closer so Nova could lean forward and use it. "Don't get used to the luxury couch breakfast though. We usually eat at the table or island in the kitchen."

Nova nodded and dug into her breakfast, swallowing her medicine with her apple juice.

* * *

Maggie and Alex had agreed that tomorrow they would go get special tours of L-Corp and CatCo, including Eliza. All of the adults were familiar with each other's place of work with the exception of Eliza, making tomorrow the perfect opportunity for both Nova and Eliza to have a visit.

They went to the precinct first because there honestly wasn't much to be shown there. Nova got to see the bullpen and Maggie's desk. She briefly met Maggie's captain in passing and that was the extent of the tour. Maggie hadn't wanted to show her the holding cells since there were several people there at the moment, and Nova was totally fine not seeing it. It also gave Maggie a chance to put Nova on her list of approved regular visitors at the front desk.

Next, they headed to the DEO. That was much more intriguing to Nova. Kara even changed into her Supergirl suit.

As they approached the secure entrance, Nova noticed how everyone stood up a little straighter. "Ma'am," the agents nodded to her. An agent stepped up to them and held something out to Alex, "Ma'am, Agent Winn brought down her keycard and clearance earlier."

Alex nodded to him, "thank you." They all proceeded inside and Alex handed the card over to Nova. "Please, don't lose that." Nova nodded and looked down at it. "... Alex? It looks like a school ID card?" It was even complete with a headshot of her smiling from last year's school photos.

"That's the point," Alex said chuckling. "We couldn't just walk around with cards detailing the information about our super secret government organization, now can we? Anybody could find out who we are if we did that… If you lose yours, it just looks like a lost student ID. No big deal."

Alex leaned in closer and whispered in her ear conspiringly, "just don't tell your Uncle Winn that you have a higher security clearance than him." Alex winked at her and kept walking.

Nova looked down at the small card with a big smile on her face. This was the first time she had seen her full name printed on anything. Nova Aspen Danvers had a beautiful sound to it in her head, and it was surreal seeing it on this little piece of plastic.

In each hallway they went down, agents parted the way for Alex and Supergirl and everyone with them.

Alex showed Nova her lab with strict instructions to never touch anything without Alex giving the go-ahead, except the chairs and the table when nothing is on it. They went and saw Alex's personal office. Alex even revealed the combination to her snack drawer to Nova and promised to fill it with stuff Nova likes too.

Next stop: Director J'onzz's office.

"Nova, the next person we're going to visit is the Director of the DEO." Alex explained. "He's a big softy and is capable of terrifying anyone he doesn't consider family. We are special. We call him Space Dad or Papa Bear. He's your Space Grandfather from Mars, and he's already agreed to let you call him Papa, if you're alright with that."

Nova blinked a few times. So her mothers are an NCPD detective and a DEO (FBI) agent. Her aunts are Supergirl and Lena Luthor. And now her Papa is a Martian… Wow.

"That's okay with me." Nova said after taking a moment to process it all.

Alex smiled and knocked three times on his door before he answered for them to come in.

"Hey, we've brought a visitor," Maggie said entering with Alex. J'onn put down his work and looked up at them, smile wide on his face. He stood up and hugged them both, "well bring her in!"

Kara lead Nova in before either of them could turn around for her. "Nova, this is your Papa, J'onn. J'onn, this is the newest Danvers." Kara said introducing them.

"Papa J'onn kinda sounds like the pizza place…" Nova said causing them all to laugh. J'onn just had this calming feature about him. Nova didn't even stutter.

J'onn nodded, "it is kind of like the pizza place… It's wonderful to finally meet you, Nova." He held out his hand and she shook it. J'onn had been the one Maggie and Alex couldn't keep their secret from. Their thoughts were so loud the day after they met Nova that he had to pull them into a room to congratulate them.

"You know, I don't know what I was expecting, but I'm pretty sure that's not what Martians actually look like..." Nova said with curiosity.

J'onn hummed, "maybe you're right. They could look like this!" J'onn shifted into Supergirl causing them all to laugh. "Or maybe like this…" He shifted into Alex and then Maggie.

"They could even look like this," he said before shifting into Nova herself.

Her jaw dropped, "that is so cool." She stepped up to get a closer look. She put a hand lightly on the side of his face. It was weird looking at herself as a practical clone.

"How do you do that?" Nova asked, the nerd inside her couldn't be contained. J'onn shifted into his true Martian form and knelt down. "Martians are shape shifters. We can take on the form of another by looking at them and assuming their identity. This is what I really look like."

"No, no, I get that. I mean _how_ do you do that? Is it a change like on a cellular or molecular level? Does it involve light distortions? _How_?" She asked reaching to feel the skin on his hand. It was tougher than that of a human's, but still very soft.

J'onn chuckled looking up to the surprised and very proud new mothers, "you've got a smart one here." He turned back to Nova. "We can go in-depth into that one of these days. Alex has all of the slides in her lab. Maybe some time you can come in here and we'll go over how it works with you."

J'onn slid back into his human form. "It's still tonight at six at your place, right?" J'onn asked for clarification. Maggie nodded, "still same time and place. We just wanted to show her around where Alex and I work this morning. We're all heading over to Lena's after this to go for a swim, but the party is still on for tonight."

Alex looked over at the stack of paperwork on his desk. He was about halfway through it. "We don't want to keep you too long. We just wanted to stop in and say hello." Alex said. She wanted him to be able to get through it all so he could join them for a carefree evening.

"Well I appreciate you coming by… It was lovely meeting you, Nova, and I look forward to seeing you again this evening." Nova smiled and shook his hand again before being lead out.

Alex showed her the locker room and several training rooms before bringing her to the command center.

They stopped walking and Alex and Maggie made eye contact with each other, an evil smile growing on each of their faces. Eliza caught onto what they were planning fairly quickly, but before she could speak, Alex and Maggie crept quietly forward.

Lena came up behind Nova, putting a hand on each shoulder, "watch this. This is your Uncle Winn." She whispered to her.

It just so happened that Winn was taking a break from his duties to play a video game on his computer.

Alex and Maggie picked a side, getting really close, before they both shouted, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"

Winn shrieked and threw his wireless computer mouse across the room and almost fell over the back of his chair.

Nova could see the other agents trying really hard not to laugh. She guessed that this type of thing happened quite often in here.

Winn put a hand to his chest trying to calm his rapidly beating heart. Maggie and Alex hopped up onto his work space looking at him with such glee.

"Are you both _trying_ to kill me?!"

Maggie shook her head, "no." She said it with such innocence.

"We just wanted to put on a good show. Congrats, Schott, you didn't disappoint." Alex said, clapping him on the shoulder.

Kara walked over holding the destroyed computer mouse. "I believe this belongs to you…"

Winn pouted, "yes… That's the third one these goons made me destroy in the past two weeks… I'm gonna have to design one that won't break when I inevitably throw it across the room again..."

Maggie and Alex high fived at their success.

Nova watched it all absolutely loving the show that they put on, even if it was at her Uncle Winn's expense. She struck gold with this family. Their playfulness and love was exactly what every foster kid hoped to find in a family. There were rules Nova had to follow, yes, but in general, it was her understanding that as long as nothing bad happened, she was allowed to just have a good time.

"Is there a reason you two decided to pay me such a lovely visit on my break? Isn't there somewhere else you have to be? Someone else to terrorize?" Winn asked, slightly annoyed but he knew they only did these things to the ones they cared about. He rotated his chair around, intending to go grab another snack or soda from the vending machine when he stopped in his tracks.

He reached over and smacked Alex several times on the arm like he couldn't believe what he was actually seeing in front of him.

"Alex? Alex, is that…?" He asked in a whisper. It was almost like it was his first time seeing a baby deer in the wild and didn't want to scare it.

Alex reached up and held onto Winn's wrist so he'd stop hitting her. "Yes it is. And yes she can hear you too." Alex let go of him and Maggie nudged him forward.

"Hhhhiiiiii, I'm your Uncle Winn."

Nova stepped forward and shook his hand, "hi Uncle Winn. I'm Nova."

Alex and Maggie had told her in advance that Winn was just a little kid stuck in a big person's body. Any type of game you wanted to play, he'd be willing to do it.

"Alex and Maggie said you did really well coding one of your robots for school." Winn said. "Maybe sometime I can show you the cool coding I do here."

Nova nodded with a smile, "I'd like that. The robot was fun and all, but it was a little rudimentary and basic. What you do has actual applications to it."

Winn stood up looking rather proud. He turned to the equally proud mothers and pointed to Nova, "I like her."

…

They wrapped things up at the DEO and headed off to Lena's penthouse. Everyone had their swimsuits packed and were ready to cool off from the warm summer day.

"Aunt Lena? Do you have sunscreen?" Nova asked when she stepped out of what was now her designated room at Lena's place in her swimsuit.

Lena tossed it over to her. "It's SPF 50, and there's a shade that goes over the pool."

One of the perks to Lena's penthouse and the reason why she chose this one, was because it had its own private pool. Her large glass doors allowed them to step out onto her rooftop pool and lounge area. It was even deep enough to allow a diving section.

Once she was sunscreened up, Nova came out with her towel and sunglasses on.

"I like the surf shirt, Nova. I used to have one just like that." Alex said.

"Thanks… I burn too easily to not wear one." It was purple and long sleeved, covering her entire upper body to the base of her neck.

"Did Lena give you the sunscreen?" Maggie asked her.

Nova nodded looking up just in time to see Alex do a running dive into the pool.

Nova smiled and looked at Maggie. "I bet I can do a better dive than that."

Thus ensued a diving competition between Alex, Nova, and Kara. All of them splashing around and enjoying the refreshing swim.

* * *

I'm very happy to hear that you all are enjoying this story! Up next we have the welcome party/game night. Nova has a special moment with Lena.

If there's anything specific that you'd like to see, come say hi on tumblr. I have my asks open (The-SuperLizard). I can't guarantee that I'll add something in, but I'll see what I can do! I'm always open for new ideas. Again, thank you for reading!

Updates will be spaced out to a couple times a week so there's time to write in between, but I'll try to keep consistent with posting.


	6. Welcome to the Family, This is Home

I really appreciate the reviews! Thank you! Enjoy!

* * *

Nova was like a fish. The second she was in that pool, she didn't want to get out. She'd always loved swimming but rarely got the chance to. Alex couldn't wait until they took their first trip to Midvale with her to swim in the ocean. Alex would love to teach her how to surf.

Maggie and Alex watched her from their lounge chairs as Nova attempted to get Lena to join her in the pool. Kara came over and sat on the end of Maggie's chair facing the both of them.

"I called James, and he's got the photo printed. He made a few copies for us all to have, too. And the dairy-free cake for tonight is already in your fridge."

Maggie tilted her head to the side with a sly smile. "That sounds to me, Kara Danvers, like breaking and entering."

Kara sputtered a few times, "noooooo. What would make you think that?"

"I'm a dete-"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Kara waved her off. "You're a detective, you detect. I've heard that one before."

"Lunch is ready!" Eliza called out before Kara and Maggie could continue their banter.

…

Nova had crashed not long after coming home. She was sprawled across the sofa, dead to the world as everyone was making the final preparations for the afternoon/evening.

Kara had insisted on hanging her large "Welcome Home!" banner that she'd made. Maggie and Alex let her do it but made her promise to take it down if Nova wasn't okay with it. Nova wasn't exactly someone who was used to all the attention on her. The last thing they wanted to do was stress her out and overwhelm her. They wanted to ease her into her new life as seamlessly as possible. They had been doing well with that so far… Except now, their casual night was turning into more of a party.

They were all rather impressed at how heavily Nova slept. She didn't stir once, not even when Gertrude and Luna decided to use her legs as pillows and nap with her.

…

Nova slowly came out of her nap, yawning and stretching. It was nice waking up like that.

She opened her eyes to see a paw and a snout right next to her head. Luna had worked her way up while she was sleeping so she was now face for fur face with her. She glanced down to Gertrude practically on top of her too. How she had not noticed that while she was sleeping, she had no idea.

"Hey, you're awake," Maggie came in smiling. "It looks like you're more dog than you are human!"

Nova chuckled, jostling the German Shepherd and Husky. Gertrude let out a huff in annoyance just making Maggie and Nova laugh more.

"Did you have a good nap?" Maggie asked, taking a seat on the edge of the coffee table.

Nova nodded, "yeah. I needed that. I haven't gotten to swim in so long. I had a lot of fun."

"Well I'm very glad to hear that. How about you go jump in the shower and wash all the chlorine off. I can french braid your hair when you're done if you want?"

"Yeah, that'd be awesome. Thanks!" Nova said before extracting herself out from under the dogs and heading towards her room.

…

Maggie brushed through Nova's hair a few times before she parted it and began braiding. They were enjoying the few minutes of calm before everyone started showing up. Nova had her music on in the background, humming along with it.

Before she knew it, Nova's long, red curls were in two neat braids. Maggie held up the mirror for her to see. "I love them, Maggie. Thank you."

"You're welcome… I haven't done that in a while. I'm glad it turned out as well as it did."

"Where'd you learn how to do that?" Nova asked, running her hand along the tightly woven strands.

Maggie sighed, "my Mom used to do them for me a lot when I was little." It was one of her few fond memories she had left.

Nova noticed the sad tone to her voice and didn't push. Maggie and Alex hadn't pushed Nova into saying anything she didn't want to talk about, so the least Nova could do was reciprocate that to Maggie.

"Well, you'll have to teach me sometime. I've never been good at doing it. I never get to have them like this, and I want to do it more. Plus, it makes my curls really nice when I take it out."

Maggie smiled at her. "You can practice on me. Just don't let Alex try it. She'll end up knotting your hair…"

"Speaking from experience?" Nova asked, laughing.

"What about experience?" Alex asked coming into the room.

Maggie shook her head, laughing too, "remember the time you tried to braid my hair?"

Alex's smiled faded and her eyes narrowed, "that piece of information does not leave this room… Mistakes were made… It was time for you to get a haircut anyways…"

Maggie stood up and kissed Alex. "I know, babe, I know."

Alex leaned around her to see Nova. "Nice braids! And your Uncle Winn is here already. He said he couldn't wait until the actual time this thing starts… Something about after meeting you this morning made him too excited to wait that long." She smiled at Nova, happy to see her family was all getting along so well.

"Well, let's not keep him waiting then," Nova said with a smile and followed her mothers out of her room.

…

Winn hadn't been the only one excited, though. James and Lucy showed up not long after him followed by J'onn. Everyone was already there an hour early. Luckily, all the Danvers women anticipated this and had started grilling the burgers and hotdogs early. This was not the first time Eliza Danvers was practically feeding an army.

Nova had anticipated being nervous about meeting James and Lucy. It was two more people to add to her list of insane family members. Her Uncle James was Guardian and James Olsen, the Pulitzer Prize winning photographer. Her Aunt Lucy ran the DEO desert base and was a well-known lawyer.

Nova wasn't a people person, but they were really great with her. They shook hands and relaxed into conversations with everyone else, allowing her to adjust at her own pace. Nova had a feeling that Alex and Maggie played a part in making sure everyone knew ahead of time to go slow, and she appreciated that. It was helping a lot.

Something Nova really wasn't expecting, though, was the small pile of gifts wrapped on the coffee table in the living room under the large welcome banner.

Alex came up beside her. "Today we're calling it a welcome home party, but next year on June 2nd, it's your 'Gotcha Day'... Think of it as a second birthday, gifts and all. It's a day to celebrate the day you came home with us and officially became ours… It's the day you became a Danvers." Nova subconsciously reached up and held onto her new necklace.

"You know you don't have to…" Nova began telling her, but quieted when Alex shook her head.

"We want to. It's an important day for you and for us. It's something to be celebrated, Nova."

"Cheers to that," Maggie said coming up to them. She handed Alex a glass of champagne like hers, and Nova a glass of lemonade.

"To family," Nova said, raising her glass.

"To family," Maggie and Alex said together, clinking all their glasses at once.

…

It had taken no time at all for every last piece of food to disappear.

Maggie ushered a somewhat reluctant Nova to the living room where everyone was waiting. She had always hated attention on her. She'd perfected being overlooked and unseen. She was rather comfortable being in the shadows. But right now, it was time for gifts and she was really curious to see what she'd gotten.

She sat down on the stool that had been brought in and the first gift was put into her hands. "That one's from us," Lucy said from her spot next to James on the sofa. Nova smiled at them before opening it.

"That's so cool!" Nova said with a large smile. It was one of the new modern polaroid cameras and a set of sharpies. "Thank you!" She got up and gave them both a hug.

"You're welcome, honey." Lucy said.

James fist bumped her. "I'm glad you like it. Maggie said that you're into art and liked all the pictures in your room. We figured we'd get you a camera of your own. The sharpies are so you can write whatever you want on the bottoms of the photos."

"I love it, really." Nova said, taking her seat again. Maggie took the gift and put it aside while Alex removed the wrapping paper.

"Us next!" Kara yelled, unable to wait. Nova chuckled and Alex handed Lena's and Kara's over.

While Nova was unwrapping it, Lena spoke up with an explanation. "I overheard you say something to Alex yesterday, and… yeah… I didn't know if you wanted to teach yourself, or I could look into getting you lessons…" Lena trailed off with a slight shrug.

Nova's eyes widened. In her hands was a beautiful ukulele. It was painted to look like distressed wood, and it was stunning. There was a lesson book with it that Nova couldn't wait to open up. She looked between the instrument in her hands and her aunt, mouth opening and closing, unsure at just how to express her gratitude.

Lena smiled, "no need for thanks. Your reaction and that look is good enough. You'll have to play for me sometime." Nova nodded vigorously causing everyone to laugh in amusement.

Nova looked down in the same box that held the ukulele to find socks, a t-shirt, pajama pants, and a hoodie, all with the House of El symbol on them. She laughed loudly as she slid on the hoodie, wearing it proudly. "It's great, Aunt Kara. Thank you, both of you."

J'onn had given Nova a massive fuzzy blanket with the periodic table of elements on it that she absolutely loved. The blanket was easily large enough to cover her double bed. It went along with their conversation earlier that morning about the genetic and biological makeup of J'onn's ability to shapeshift. He took a guess, and it paid off.

Eliza had given Nova a longboard with painted waves, much to Alex's surprise. It was so she could practice balancing before visiting Midvale. Learning how to use the longboard would make it a little easier for her when she learned how to surf. Everyone had even melted a little when Nova said, "thanks, Nana."

Lastly, Winn handed over his box.

When Nova opened it, she pulled out a teddy bear that was dark blue and covered in stars. (Nova would later come to name it Orion after the constellation.) "You might feel a little old having a teddy bear, but I thought it'd be good for you to have." Winn explained. "One thing I never got when I was in foster care, was a teddy bear… And you know that your moms are always here for you, but I want you to remember that, that teddy bear represents how you've got the rest of us too."

Nova smiled and gave Winn a hug. He was awkward, as Winn usually was, but he gave good hugs. That was one connection Nova would always be able to understand better than anyone. She and her Uncle Winn had both spent a lot of time alone growing up.

…

Once the gifts had been taken care of, they all made their way outside. It was getting darker out, so it was the perfect time to light the campfire.

"Is this what it's usually like when everyone is over?" Nova asked her Papa J'onn as they walked outside.

"Oh, yes." He answered. "Just you wait until Winn starts his campfire songs. And we haven't even gotten to games yet."

"Wow," Nova breathed out. She had no idea where they all got their energy from. Even she was struggling to keep up with constant moving.

"I know. But, this is one of my favorite things to see… Look around. What do you notice?" J'onn asked her.

Nova looked around the backyard. She could see Lena laughing at something Kara must've said. She's not even in her own chair. She's sitting on Kara's lap looking comfortable and happy. Winn and James were playfully shoving each other back and forth as they fought for Luna's attention. Lucy and Maggie were laughing at James and Winn while petting Gertrude. Gertrude was laying on her back, belly up, loving all the attention. Alex and Eliza were sitting on one of the benches that had been pulled into the yard. They both looked content and relaxed as they watched over everything. Alex was even slightly leaning against her mother's shoulder.

"They all look like they're at peace and carefree." Nova said after her observations.

"That's right. This is one of the few times you'll see all of them this relaxed at once." J'onn said, a proud and soft smile on his face.

"You're at peace too." Nova said, still looking out at everyone. After a beat, she turned her head to meet his eyes. "You get your peace from seeing them relax."

"I do, Nova. You're right. They are like my Earth children. I am not relaxed until they are all happy. That includes you now."

Nova nodded and walked over to take her seat by the fire.

…

Alex had convinced Nova to go inside and get her guitar. She told Nova she didn't have to sing if she didn't want to, but campfire songs were so much better with a guitar.

Nova hadn't intended to sing, but the first song they got into was "Stand By Me" by Ben E. King. She couldn't help but sing along. Afterall, everyone had been trying so hard to make her feel welcome and accepted that she decided it was important to share this little piece of herself.

She didn't try to, but she outdid Winn and Kara, having a blast doing it. One song turned into two, which turned into three, and so on. At some point in the middle, Winn had even managed to get marshmallow in his hair from making smores. It was easy to feel comfortable around them.

They continued on like that until Kara stood up. She had asked Nova to follow her, which she did leaving everyone else outside.

Nova had been concerned that she had done something to upset or anger her aunt. It was the exact opposite… It turns out, Kara had a proposition for Nova. She wanted her help with a little secret project she was doing in the coming weeks: Project Proposal. She needed Nova's help and her guitar to pull it off. Nova couldn't say no.

…

"What were you two doing for so long?" Winn asked skeptically as Kara and Nova returned to the campfire.

"Nothing that concerns you, Winn," Kara answered. "It was secret Aunt/Niece information. Since you are neither, we cannot tell you." She shrugged and plopped back down next to Lena.

"Is your Aunt corrupting you already?" Maggie asked.

Nova nodded, "oh yeah. She's got me turned to the dark side. Apparently that's where they keep all the cookies and rainbows and sunshine…" They all burst out laughing.

"So when can I take her… you know… up, up, and away with me?" Kara asked, pointing to the sky and effectively changing the conversation.

"NO," all three of them answered at once. Kara resembled a kicked puppy at being shot down so forcefully.

"Sorry, Aunt Kara," Nova said. "I _really_ don't like heights. Like… really, _really_ , don't like them. The best I can do is climb a tree, and even then it's iffy." Kara still looked sad, but a little more understanding. She'd tried to fly with Maggie once. Neither of them speak about how that went.

Trying to salvage the situation, Nova thought of a compromise and suggested, "but hey… Maybe sometime when I'm visiting Alex at work, we can try going around one of the big training rooms a few times? With a helmet… We might even be able to work our way up higher?" That got Kara to smile. She'd eventually get her niece flying with her.

"I can agree to those terms." Kara nodded and then turned to Alex and Maggie. "Can you both agree to that? It's pretty reasonable…"

Alex and Maggie looked at each other. They were having another one of their silent conversations.

After about a minute Alex turned to Kara, "we need to think about it a little more… But if-" Kara started to light up. " _IF_ we decide that it's okay, one of us has to be there to supervise."

Kara grumbled, "I guess that's okay."

…

Nova watched the group continue their heated game of monopoly from the kitchen island. They had all decided to move inside when the mosquitos started to get them.

After a few rounds of twister, a ridiculously competitive game of Mario Kart, and one intense round of slapjack, they had moved on to Monopoly. It was Winn, Alex, Maggie, and Lucy all playing.

Nova had only won one game of twister, but she considered that to be a significant victory. There might have even been an even tinier victory dance done by her… Maybe. The jury is still out on that one.

Again, Nova found herself not believing this was her family. Her loud, crazy, dramatic, enthusiastic, loving, perfect, _family_. _Hers_.

Maggie was animatedly arguing over properties with James, Winn ducking as one of her hands came flying around again. From what Nova could tell, James was holding onto something Maggie wanted, and it wasn't working out well for him. Nova chuckled at their shenanigans and sighed.

Lena saw Nova watching from a distance and came to join her. She leaned against the counter next to Nova.

"They're a lot to handle right off the bat…" Lena began. Nova glanced over at her to acknowledge her speaking and smiled warmly before turning her attention back to the game.

Lena did the same and continued, "I was once introduced to everyone, too, through a game night… And in a way, they're still all going a little out of their way to make me feel accepted, to feel comfortable. It's hard sometimes to remember that you've got all of them as your safety net… It's a concept that I never understood until I met the Danvers sisters…" Lena chuckled, "they're a force to be reckoned with."

Nova nodded, "I definitely agree with that."

Lena smiled, continuing, "and when you're feeling insecure about how much you're worth to them? They'll hug you until those feelings all go away… When you're not feeling well or in pain, they'll find a way to make the pain lessen… When you're sad, they'll be there to eat junk food or watch movies or just hold you as you cry… They won't abandon you. They'll love you no matter what. No matter how much you think it's too good to be true, just remember that it's not. It's real. They really do exist, and the world doesn't deserve them. But you do. Each one of us here, do. We're here for each other. You won't find anyone else like them… They're good people.

"Something that I never understood was that they would choose to do things just to make others happy. I didn't get a lot of love growing up, and so it was hard to realize people were nice and genuinely care, especially without any strings attached… I don't know if they told you this or not, but I want to emphasize that you can call any of us, and we'll be there for whatever you need. You're family now. You're a Danvers…

"That being said, if you ever need an outside view on something, you've got me. My number is in your phone. Call, text, facetime, whatever. You've got me in your corner too."

Lena spoke of a pain that Nova knew and felt too. It struck a chord with her. They were so similar in their feelings of unwantedness and had both been rescued by the Danvers. This was her piece to share with her aunt Lena.

Nova had spent a lot of time waiting for love and a family. She thought that it wasn't ever going to happen… She just hadn't realized she had been waiting for the most amazing parents to find her. The waiting had to happen and it paid off.

"The Danvers built their family," Lena said. "Nothing goes by blood in here. Blood families don't matter. All of this started with Alex and Eliza Danvers… Kara came to Alex when she was your age. Winn came into the group when Kara met him at CatCo. He's a brother to them. James came when he started working at CatCo. He knew who Kara was because of Superman. Lucy entered when she started dating James. J'onn is our Martian father who's been watching out for Alex and Kara for years, and Eliza loves all of us like her own children. To the Danvers, it doesn't matter where you're from. They'll show you how to love and be loved. This is home. They are you're home. It might not quite feel like it yet, but you'll feel it someday. They'll do something that makes you feel whole and safe. And you'll know…"

"And if I already felt that?" Nova asked and Lena smiled at her. "Then you know you're right where you're supposed to be."

…

The game of Monopoly had ended early when it got too… crazy. Eliza had called it a tie and no one was going to argue with her ruling. Nova had watched on in complete amusement and was impressed at their dedication to the game. She made a mental note to play with just Maggie and Alex at some point. She figured it'd be less stressful when it was just them.

Everyone had said their goodbyes with hugs. Nova was definitely warming up to them all after this game night/welcoming. It had been a good introductory day and night.

Nova was now sitting on Maggie's and Alex's bed in her pajamas waiting to see what they called her in for. "We wanted to wait until everyone had left before we gave this to you." Alex said before pulling out a wrapped box.

Nova took it and looked at them questioningly. "You've already given me so much…" She said trailing off.

Maggie smiled, "open it."

Nova did, confused when she saw that it was a worn photo album. "What is this?" She asked, not opening the cover of it yet.

"The night you became an orphan, the firefighters were able to salvage some photos… Mr. Williams took them and put them into an album…" At that explanation, Nova started slowly turning through the pages. She'd never seen pictures of herself so young and little.

Alex picked up where Maggie left off. "Mr. Williams started adding photos from each year you spent at the orphanage. He hoped one day to give it to whoever adopted you, or to you when you turn eighteen… Unfortunately, there weren't any photos that made it out that had your parents in them… But if someday you want to know more about them, we can look them up. The choice is yours, but we wanted to at least show the book to you. We're planning on keeping it in the office on the bookshelf."

Nova was only half listening as she ran her thumb over the edge of every picture, turning each page oh so carefully. It was almost as exciting as it was painful to see these pictures. As amazing as it was to have this, it hurt to see how her once bright, innocent smile, lost it's shine. It was as if someone was slowly dimming the lights as she aged.

It went on like that until Nova reached the last image. It was the picture that had been taken the day before just outside of the orphanage with Maggie and Alex. The light was back in her smile and in her eyes. Underneath it was written: "Gotcha Day! June 2nd, 2018. Nova Danvers."

Alex and Maggie sat in silence as Nova had turned through the pages. They were waiting to see what her response was. Neither one of them wanted to interrupt her.

Nova chuckled wetly at that last image. It was as if the toll and pain of all those years alone were gone. Her heart felt lighter.

She sniffled and rubbed at her eyes. She ran her fingers over this one as well, thankful that it was in plastic and her tears wouldn't ruin it.

"You know," Nova said clearing her throat, keeping her eyes locked on the picture. "I was five years old when I realized that I wasn't living life like a normal kid… We had to do a project in Kindergarten around Christmas time. It was a family tree…" Her voice was far away as she retold the memory.

"I was with a foster family at the time and came home asking them for help with how to do it… I didn't know any better then… The man at the time told me to ask his wife when she came home from work… Instead of waiting, I went to ask their daughter…"

"She told me I didn't have a family because I wasn't a good girl and didn't deserve one… And I believed her… This picture," Nova turned to one and pointed at it. She held it so Alex and Maggie could see it clearly. It was of little Nova next to a small cake with a "six" on it.

"This picture was a week afterwards when I was brought back and returned on my birthday… You see that smile? Compare it to the year before." Nova said before flipping back to her fifth birthday photo. The difference was small, but undeniable. It broke both Alex's and Maggie's hearts to see it.

"That's what it looks like to be rejected and realize that you aren't as special as you thought you were… And for a really long time, I thought that smile," Nova pointed back to the earlier birthday photo, "I thought that smile would never be back again…" Nova said, her voice breaking.

"Until yesterday, I thought I'd feel broken and unwanted forever… I mean, why would I think otherwise? But look at this." Nova turned to that last photo again. Tears slid down her face as she looked up at Alex and Maggie. "That smile is back… That light is back." Her bottom lip trembled as she tried to smile through her tears. She was so so happy yet so sad for her younger self.

"I never knew my parents. I know almost nothing about them other than they're the reason I am… _was_ … an orphan. It's their fault that they were too drugged up to know the house was on fire. But what I do know, is that they wouldn't have been able to make that smile happen." Nova said pointing to that photo again. She roughly scrubbed away more tears.

"Maybe someday I'll want to know what they looked like, but they'll never be more than the people who were unfit to have a child. That smile could only be brought back by my mothers. So, thank you for giving me a family to love and for finding me and being my mothers."

Maggie and Alex pulled Nova into a crushing hug. Alex kissed the top of her head, "we love you, Nova." That caused Nova to hold on tighter and to let out a sob of relief and happiness.

"Thank you for waiting for us," Maggie whispered to her.

"I love you both…" Nova whispered back.

And that night, no complaints were made as their king size bed held their thirteen year old daughter, themselves, and two snuggly dogs.


	7. First Trip to Midvale

_Guest:_ Thank you for your suggestion. I'll add something in soon about the dangers of the job.

baratta jennifer Thank you for suggesting the addition of a friend Nova's own age. I address it a little bit in this chapter and will be sure to add friends in the coming updates!

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Thank you all for your comments and reviews! I see them all, and I love reading them! I appreciate them so so much, and thank you all for reading. Enjoy!

* * *

"So we've got all our bags and swimsuits. Nova has her guitar-"

"Babe," Maggie tried cutting Alex off but was unsuccessful. This was the third time Alex had looked over everything sitting the the trunk.

"-and she has her backpack with her meds in it, plus her longboard… We have the dog bowls and food and toys and treats. We've got-"

"Al..." Maggie tried again, but still had no luck.

"-extra blankets and pillows for the car ride and snacks. Movies have been loaded onto my iPad in case Nova wants to watch one-"

"Alex!" Maggie raised her voice and chuckled. "We've got it all! Relax, we're only gonna be gone for five days. And it's to your mom's in Midvale. Just take a deep breath!"

It was too early in the morning for all of this. Maggie and Alex hadn't had their coffee yet, planning to stop on the road. Nova, having already eaten breakfast, was practically falling asleep leaning against the side of the car. Both dogs were already asleep in the back seat, barely leaving any space for Nova. The sun was hardly starting to come up. It was definitely too early for this.

Nova yawned widely and shuffled over to Alex and Maggie. She put her head against the back of Alex's shoulder. "Can we leave now, please? I'm sure we've got everything." She asked groggily.

Alex turned and hugged her, kissing the top of her head. "Yes, we can. Go get in your seat and buckle up."

Maggie stepped up to Alex and kissed her. "Do you want me to drive, or are you alright to drive?" Maggie asked her.

"I'll drive. It'll keep my mind occupied." Alex reached up and closed the trunk. As great as her relationship was getting with her mother, it still gave Alex some anxiety to go see her. It would fade the closer they got, but it was still something she dealt with each time. They were working on it at Alex's pace.

They got into their seats and turned to see that Nova had her big headphones on and her head against her pillow already asleep. Luna was half laying on her and Gertrude was half laying on Luna. Nova had an arm laying protectively over her dogs. It was absolutely adorable.

"Coffee, Dr. Dr. Mrs. Danvers, or Mrs. Dr. Dr. Danvers, or Dr. Mrs. Dr. Danvers. However you want it said, I need my coffee…" A decaffeinated Maggie was a grumpy Maggie.

Alex chuckled and started the car, heading off in the direction of coffee.

…

Nova was out cold, not even waking to Maggie and Alex's occasional singing along with the radio. To keep each other entertained, Maggie and Alex discussed possible hikes to do in the mountains around Midvale. There was one in particular that they wanted to take Nova to, if hiking was something Nova was interested in.

They talked about plans for the rest of the summer. There were some potential summer camps that they thought they'd present to Nova as options for her to try. Knowing that Nova liked science, art, and singing, they had pulled a few options. Nova could always pick something else, but they thought they'd prepare some for her to consider. Alex had even already looked into summer programs up at her alma mater, Stanford. They didn't want her just stuck around the house or at the DEO.

Alex glanced in the rearview mirror checking that Nova was still asleep before bringing up the next topic with Maggie.

"We need to figure out what she wants to do about high school… We need to get working on that. If she wants to go to the public school near our house, or pick a private school around…" Alex trailed off.

"Hmm," Maggie hummed. "While we're here, we can look at schools on your laptop and see what we like. We can give her the option between a few different ones."

The public school Nova had been going to was in a different district to the one they lived in because of the distance. No matter what, Nova would have to switch school. Neither of them thought this would be a big issue for Nova since she wasn't fond of the other people in her classes.

Maggie sat up straighter in her seat and pulled out her phone. She turned off the radio and put the phone on speaker so Alex could hear. She hit a number and waited for the line to be picked up.

 _\- "Hey! How's my favorite detective doing?"_ Winn asked cheerily when he answered. He had to at work early today on this Friday morning, so he was already wide awake.

 _\- "Hey, Winn. I'm good. We're all headed down to Eliza's now… But I need a favor. You have a sec?"_ Maggie asked.

 _\- "Sure! What can I do for ya?"_

 _\- "Could you look up the best rated private schools and the public school near our house and send the list to me and Alex? Please?"_

 _\- "I can do you one better and send over the list now with it already ranked three different ways! The first list is by best test scores, the second by best arts programs, the third is best overall happiness and satisfaction by both students and parents, and the fourth is by location and closeness to home. The public school is already included."_

Maggie and Alex looked at each other with their mouths hanging open. That was impressive, unexpected, and very heartwarming that he already did that.

 _\- "Winn… That's amazing, thank you so much!"_ Maggie said, genuinely touched.

 _\- "D'awww it's nothing,"_ Winn said, a warm smile growing on his face despite them not being able to see it. " _I'm just looking out for my new niece! I knew it was only a matter of time before you came asking, so I thought I'd get a jump start… I am the greatest uncle afterall."_ He said the last line with smugness in his voice but full of affection.

 _\- "Winn, really,"_ Alex added in, " _thank you so much for this. That means so much that you've done all that."_ Alex too, was touched by what her honorary little brother had done.

 _\- "Oh hey now, it was nothing. She's family right? Just like you two, I'd do anything for her… And for you guys. You're my family."_

 _\- "Got that right, kid."_ Maggie said with a smile. They were all family. These Danvers women had a way of making everyone feel so loved.

 _\- "Alright you two, I've gotta get back to work. Papa Bear just showed up in command with his big disapproving face… LOVE YOU!"_

 _\- "We love you too you dork,"_ Maggie and Alex both said together chuckling happily.

Both of their phones chimed right after Maggie hung up the phone. The lists of schools were already there waiting for them. Both knew that they'd look over each school just to be sure they liked them too, but they trusted Winn completely. He'd only put ones on there that they'd consider to be the best.

"You know…" Maggie began, "Maybe we should put Winn into the mix of potential legal guardians should something happen… I know we haven't really talked much about that, but I think he'd be good, too."

Alex smiled at Maggie glancing over before looking back at the road. "I was thinking the same thing… But let's table that for a little longer. I think the school situation needs to be squared away while we're here, and then talk about that more when we get home."

"Agreed," Maggie said. "She needs to decide and then start making friends around her own age… I know we're all a blast to be around, but she needs a few normal people in her life too."

"Hey," Alex said in mock offense. "I'm normal…"

"Of course you are, babe." Maggie chuckled, entwining their hands over the middle console. "You've just got an alien sister and are the Deputy Director of the DEO… Totally normal."

Alex pouted dramatically at that, so Maggie did the only thing she could to get that pout off of her wife's face. She leaned over as far as she could and gave her a sweet, tender kiss. And just as she predicted, Alex's pout grew into a warm, loving smile.

"Just because we're not normal, doesn't mean what we've got isn't perfect." Maggie said softly to her. "Normal is overrated, and you know that."

Alex sighed contently, "yeah, I do know that. You're right..."

"Now that's what I like to hear." Maggie said proudly. She loved hearing that she was right from Alex.

Alex chuckled before she glanced over at Maggie again. "I love you, Maggie Danvers."

Maggie smiled with full dimples, softening, "and I love you, Alex Danvers."

With another quick kiss, Alex focused back on the road. Maggie turned the radio back on and kept their hands together in the middle. They let the soft sounds of the radio accompany the sound of the car as they continued onward on the familiar path to Midvale.

…

They had been on the road for three hours before Nova woke up. It was a more reasonable hour now, being that it was 8:30 am. Alex had been insistent on leaving and being on the highway before the rush hour traffic in National City hit. That also meant leaving very early. City life started early.

Both Maggie and Alex were used to the hour. On any other day, they would typically be getting ready for work or going out for an early morning run, but for the teenager in the backseat, it was way too early.

Nova yawned and rubbed her eyes, trying to wake up more. "How long have we been driving?" She asked them. "Three hours," Alex told her. "We've only got another hour to go. Are you doing okay back there?"

Nova had told them she had never been in the car for a trip longer than an hour, so they were being cautious about the whole experience. Going from one hour to four was not easy and could make for a very uncomfortable time.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I have a bit of a headache though." Nova said to Alex and Maggie.

Alex glanced back at Nova for a second. "I have some Advil in the glove box. Do you want some?"

Nova nodded, "yeah, that'd be good, thanks."

Maggie reached in and pulled the bottle out. She took out one and handed it back to Nova with some water.

"Thanks," Nova said, taking them from Maggie.

"Do you want a snack or something?" Maggie asked her after she had taken the medicine.

"No, I'm just gonna listen to some more music."

…

Nova sat quietly for another forty minutes listening to her music before the long ride began getting to her again. Alex glanced up at her quite frequently through the rearview mirror making sure she was still okay, but even through her glances, Alex could see that Nova was getting restless. She was shifting in her seat like she couldn't find a comfortable spot anymore.

"Alex…" Nova said in a tone she hadn't used before with them. It was almost a cross between a whine and a plea.

"Yeah?" Alex asked, looking back at her.

"How much longer? Are we getting close?"

Both Maggie and Alex were extremely grateful that it had taken Nova this long before starting to complain. The drive had actually gone significantly better than they thought it would.

"Well…" Maggie began, "normally, I'd say another twenty minutes, _but_ , Alex drove a little fast… We should be there in about five more minutes." The cop in her flared up a little at the speed Alex drove, but Maggie had to admit that she did the same thing.

"Okay… Luna's heavy and she's making my leg go to sleep… And she's been drooling on me." Nova sighed. She really wasn't enjoying her time in the car anymore.

The dogs absolutely loved having their new human back with them and weren't interested in giving Nova her own personal space. Those two dogs could go after anything and anyone on command to protect their humans, but at all other times, they thought they were lap dogs. Very, _very_ large lap dogs.

"Nova! Look out your window!" Alex called from the driver's seat.

They were going over a large bridge and it provided them with Alex's favorite view. It was a straight shot of the coast and the large ocean, forest all around them accenting it. Each time Alex drove to her mom's house, she looked forward to that view specifically.

"Wow," Nova said a little breathless. A large smile grew on her face as she pressed forward between their seats to see better out the front. Luna huffed at her for disturbing her position but Nova didn't care right now. She could've sworn she'd never seen any piece of the Earth as beautiful as what she was seeing now.

"How soon can we go to the beach?!" Nova asked excitedly causing her mothers to laugh. Her discomfort of being in the car was long forgotten now.

…

Eliza was waiting for them in the driveway when they pulled in. Alex still didn't understand how she was able to predict exactly when she or Kara would always arrive. It was a weird talent that she had.

Alex barely had the car in park before Nova was out the door, taking in a deep breath of the ocean air.

"Hi Nana!" Nova said, going over and giving her a hug.

"Hi Nova. How was the ride?" Eliza asked. The spontaneous greeting hug from Nova was something that she hadn't expected but absolutely loved. It was nice to know that Nova was just as excited as she was. At least Eliza knew the feelings weren't one-sided.

"It was good! Long and boring, too, but I slept through a lot of it… So when can we go to the beach?!" Nova asked, bouncing on her toes, excitement clear in her bright green eyes.

"Slow down there speedster. How about we eat something before spending the afternoon in the water? That way you won't get hungry partway through and have to come back to the house." Alex suggested.

Nova nodded, "alright. I can accept those terms." She said before going and grabbing her bags out of the car.

"Hey, Mom," Alex greeted her once Nova left them and embraced her.

"Hi, Eliza," Maggie said when it was her turn.

The dogs had come out of the car when Nova did and also waited for their turn patiently. They had to give their grandma kisses and get rubs and pats from her. Eliza always spoiled the dogs whenever she came to visit. Gertrude and Luna knew exactly who to go to if they wanted a little snack from the table or more rubs. Being as well trained as they were, the dogs stayed right around them rather than taking off to smell around the house.

Alex went over to help Maggie and Eliza get the bags out. Alex was now realizing she might've overpacked for their trip… Just a little.

Once inside, Luna and Gertrude decided that their naps in the car hadn't been sufficient enough so they wandered over to the beds Eliza kept for them and laid down in the sun.

"Nova, you get to stay in Alex's old room. It's up the stairs and to the right at the end of the hall." Eliza told her and Nova took her bags heading for the stairs. She had every intention of changing into her swimsuit as soon as she got up there. The sooner she got ready, the sooner she could dive into the ocean.

After bringing in the rest of the bags and hauling them upstairs, Alex, Maggie, and Eliza headed for the kitchen and were waiting for the pot of coffee to be ready.

Alex came up behind Maggie and wrapped her arms around her waist, resting her chin on her shoulder. Maggie sighed, "happy to be home?"

Alex nodded and chuckled, "yeah. I really am. And I think Nova likes it, too."

"Hmm," Maggie hummed in agreement. "I agree. I think she does." She took in a deep breath and sighed contently. Maggie always felt at peace here.

Eliza smiled from where she was sitting on her stool at the counter. She poured the coffee into the three mugs and handed them out. "I love seeing you both so happy and as parents. It looks really good. It's suits you." Eliza said to them. That drew smiles from both Maggie and Alex.

"Thank you, Eliza," Maggie said to her mother-in-law. She tilted her head up to look at Alex, "I think it suits us too, right Al?" She said before kissing Alex.

"Hmm, I think it does," Alex agreed, returning her light kiss.

"Is everything setup for tonight?" Alex asked her mom.

Eliza nodded, "let me show you," and waved them towards the backyard.

Outside, there were four poles set up that had twinkle lights hanging between them. There was a dance floor set up and several chairs and a stool. "Kara came at some point late last night and put the poles and lights up." Eliza told them.

Maggie smiled, "this is perfect… And Lena doesn't suspect a thing?"

Eliza shook her head with a smile. "Nope, not a thing. Kara said she's been extremely careful. She really wants this to be perfect."

…

 _ **SuperFam Welcome One Week Ago...**_

When Kara had gotten up from the campfire and asked Nova to come inside with her, Nova had thought that she might've done something to upset or anger her aunt.

It turns out that it was the exact opposite…

"Nova, I have a proposition for you… Take a seat." Kara said, gesturing to the extra chair in the office.

"Okay…" She said cautiously.

"I've been trying to plan something for a while and haven't been able to come up with the right way to go about doing it…" Kara explained with vague detail.

Nova must've looked as lost as she felt because Kara got up and went over to the bookshelf. She floated up to the top shelf and pulled something out of the corner. After coming back down, Kara opened her hand to reveal a small blue ring box.

"I went out with Alex and Maggie last week and looked for a ring. They've been bugging me about proposing for a while, but what they don't know is that I've had a ring in mind for months… We happened to go a store that had one that was exactly like what I've been imagining… I went back there this morning to pick it up… Neither of them know that I bought it, so you've gotta keep this between us." Kara explained to her.

Nova's face lit up. It was just a secret between her and her aunt. This felt like a really big step for her.

"It's beautiful Aunt Kara!" Nova said when Kara opened the box.

The engagement ring was a little simpler than Nova thought it would be, but not less beautiful. It was a silver band with a 1.5 carat diamond in the middle. There were three smaller diamonds on each side incorporated into the band where it twisted up by the main diamond. It was stunning. It was perfect.

"I- I hope she likes it," Kara stuttered nervously and adjusted her glasses. "It's not too big, but just big enough… It's something that's not too showy or over the top so she can wear around work and into her meetings…" Kara trailed off. A warm smile bloomed across her cheeks. "I just want it all to be perfect for her… I want to make her happy and to give her the world."

Nova smiled, "she's going to love it. I think you did a really great job picking it out."

"You think so?"

"Absolutely." Nova nodded. "... So what do you need me for?" She was still a little confused as to what role she played in this other than keeping the secret.

"I didn't know how I wanted to propose until I heard you sing… What I'm thinking… and please hear me out… is that you sing for it…" Kara said looking anxiously at Nova.

"Umm…" Nova still wasn't sure about this.

"Right, sorry, I'm not exactly being clear on how I want this to go…" Kara said before taking a moment to organize her thoughts. "... This time next week, Maggie and Alex are planning a trip to Midvale… I'm thinking that we could turn it into a group weekend with me and Lena. We used to do weekends like that every once summer.

"I could call Eliza and see if we could make that work. I could set up lights in the backyard with a dance floor and make it look like a dinner picnic. You could maybe play a song or two on your guitar and get everyone dancing, or we could just play music to dance to, to start?

"Then I want you to start playing one specific song… Everyone will slide away from the dance floor to leave just me and Lena. For that one, I'd like you to start play and sing. I'd join part way into the song and finish it alone… And then I'd ask her to marry me."

Kara finished her explanation with so much excitement in her eyes that Nova couldn't say no to it. It sounded beautiful, romantic, and intimate even with spectators. This was something she could definitely get on board with. Plus, it was all her family. Nova could play and sing in front of her family, after all, she just had outside.

Nova smiled, "I think I can help you with that… What song did you have in mind for the last one?"

Kara lost a little of her steam. "That's… that's the one I haven't figured out yet…"

"Okay… Well, we could look at songs now?" Nova suggested pulling out her phone.

For the next ten minutes, Kara and Nova exchanged numerous song suggestions and ideas. There were debates about how slow or fast the song should be, if the song they're looking for should already be acoustic or if they would have to find a way to strip it down. They were making significant progress in the planning as they were brainstorming with each other.

And Nova was the one to find it.

"How about this one?" And she hit play.

Two lines in and Kara had tears in her eyes. "That's the one."

" _Marry Me" by Train._

…

Kara had stolen Nova three times that week to practice for Project Proposal. Neither of them told Maggie or Alex what they were doing, just that it was secret aunt/niece business and important. The new mothers weren't worried about it too much since it was Kara, but they still wanted to know what was up. It was a little odd for Kara to be dropping in randomly only to whisk their daughter away.

When Kara returned Nova after that third time, Maggie and Alex literally cornered them with their arms crossed.

"Alright you two," Maggie began, "what have you been up to? What's all this secret business? And what does it have to do with Nova and her guitar?"

Both Kara and Nova knew they weren't mad, but being in a corner with Alex and Maggie interrogating them, even casually, was intimidating.

Kara tried to play innocent. Nova just spilled.

"I'mhelpingKarawithherproposal!" She said in one breath.

It took a second for them to process what Nova had blurted out, but once they did, Alex broke into a wide smile and pulled her sister into a hug. It was one that rivaled the strength of the Kryptonian's.

"Where's the ring, little Danvers?! You've been holding out on us!" Maggie said pulling her into a hug when Alex finally let her go.

"She's been hiding it in your home office on top of the bookshelf." Nova told them.

Alex took off for the office and literally climbed the shelving to reach around for the box. They all fawned over the ring as soon as it was brought down. Maggie clapped Kara on the back proudly approving of her choice. Alex was only slightly pissed that Kara hadn't told her immediately. Once the fawning had died down some, they all took a seat in the living room.

"Alright little Danvers, what's the plan?"

…

 _ **Midvale, California Now…**_

Nova had changed into her suit, eaten quickly, and was currently trying to pull everyone down to the beach.

"Hold up, Nova. I've got something for you." Eliza said causing them all to stop. "It goes along with the longboard from the Welcome party last week. It didn't make sense to drive it to National City because it's something to be used here… Close your eyes." She said, waiting as Nova covered them with her hands, before ducking into the garage.

Eliza came out holding two surfboards. She handed Alex hers and stood in front of Nova with a board that had a big red bow attached.

"Open your eyes."

Nova's jaw dropped open. In front of her was her own brand new massive surfboard in her favorite colors: turquoise and aqua.

"Have fun, sweetheart." Eliza said before handing it over to her and making her way down to the beach to set up her chair. Eliza didn't wait for the "thank you" or the hug. The look on Nova's face was enough for her.

Nova just stood there holding the board and staring at it.

Alex chuckled and put a hand on Nova's shoulder. "How about you take that bow off of it and we get it on the beach?"

Nodding quickly, Nova took it off and gave it to Maggie who had her hand stretched out waiting to receive it.

"You two go have fun," Maggie said. "I'll be down after I put this in the house."

Nova didn't need to be told twice. She and Alex took off for the beach, with Nova headed straight to Eliza to give her a massive hug.

…

Alex taught Nova how to take care of the board by waxing it. They worked on laying on the boards on the beach and trying to push up on them the way they should in the water. Alex showed her how to get to her knees and then how to get up straight to her feet from laying.

Alex told her about the currents and which waves would be good to start with. She talked about how to jump away from the board if she falls and the importance of calling her wave.

Once Alex thought Nova was ready, the took their boards and headed into the water.

Nova was surprised to find that the water was comfortably warm. It was just the right temperature to be warm but still very refreshing and wasn't cold enough for wetsuits. It was perfect.

She paddled out after Alex and sat up on her board waiting in the water. She put her wet hair up into a bun so it would stay out of the way.

"Do you want to watch me take one in first? Or do you just want to give it a try?" Alex asked her. She wanted to give Nova the option. Nova was very excited, but Alex knew how daunting it could be to surf for the first time. She didn't want to accidentally pressure her into going if she wasn't ready to.

Nova shook her head with confidence, "no, I got this."

So when the next good wave came, Nova paddled as hard as she could to catch it.

She could hear everyone cheering her on as she tried to get up on her knees. Success. Nova laughed in happiness as she rode the wave the rest of the way up on her knees. It already felt like she was flying.

Maggie was cheering and filming her the entire time from the beach. Eliza held up a white board with the number 8 written on it.

Alex smiled when she saw the 8. When she was little, her mom and dad would sit on the beach with white boards, just like now, and score her as she rode in the waves. Sometimes her dad would come out with her to give her more tips or to just have fun with her. He was the one who taught her how to surf. Being out on her board in this ocean never failed to make Alex feel closer to her father. Alex could only hope that someday Nova will feel like it brings her closer to Alex, too.

"Awesome job, Nova!" Alex said and high fived her when she paddled back. She was a very proud parent right now, a new but welcome feeling for her. "How'd it feel?"

"It felt like I was _alive!_ It- It was… I… I don't even…" Nova shook her head, unable to get the words out.

Alex smiled, "that's exactly what it's like."

Nova sighed happily and satisfied. "I wanna see you get the next one," she told Alex.

"I can do that. The view is better from the beach, but I can still put on a good show for you." Alex smirked. It only took another minute before a wave formed that Alex liked.

"Mine!" She said before paddling hard for it.

And just like that, Alex was up and carving through the waves. She was a little rusty, but she still didn't do half bad. She didn't realize quite how much she missed this until she was up there on her board. Even while on the wave, Alex made a quick mental note to visit Midvale more often. They didn't do that enough.

Nova laughed when she saw Maggie nearly spit out her drink when she realized Alex was up there showing off.

Nova had to admit, she was incredibly impressive by what Alex was doing. She didn't really know much about surfing or know if it was considered technically good, but to her, it was amazing. Nova cheered loudly when Alex dove off the board as her finish. Maggie blew Alex a kiss from the beach, giving her a thumbs up, and Eliza held up a score of 8.75.

When Alex paddled back to her, Nova high fived her just like Alex had done to her. "That was awesome! You've gotta teach me those tricks!"

Alex laughed, "I can do that, but it's going to take a lot of time to learn them."

"Well how long did it take you?" Nova asked. She was open to a little friendly competition to see if she could learn them faster. She did have a very strong competitive side to her that could be brought out in the right situation. This was definitely one of those situations.

"It took me months of training before I got anywhere good… I used to spend hours and hours in this ocean. My mom swears that I spent more of my childhood wet than I did dry… I usually got dragged back inside at the end of the day and for meals… With that being said, those tricks took about a week to master each…"

"I bet I can master two of them in the next five days." Nova said, challengingly.

Alex smirked, "we'll see how that goes… First you've gotta master getting up on your board and staying up. You need to be confident and comfortable standing before we try any tricks."

Nova also smirked just before yelling, "MINE," at the next wave and paddling for it, ending their conversation and proving just how much she wanted to learn how to surf.

…

It took five more waves before Nova stood up. She was very wobbly and unstable, but she managed to stay up. She yelled in happiness the entire ride and dove off just like Alex did after catching her waves. Maggie got it all on her phone and sent the video off to the SuperFam, incredibly proud of her daughter for standing up and staying up.

Eliza gave Nova a 10 for her wave, and Alex gave her a massive hug, tackling Nova off of her board and into the water. They both came up laughing and overjoyed.

"That was awesome, Nova! I'm so proud of you!" Alex exclaimed when they were above the surface again.

"Thanks," Nova smiled shyly. She wasn't used to praise like that or anyone saying they were proud of her.

Back on the beach, Maggie was beaming and Eliza was smiling longingly. "Jeremiah would've loved to be here for that…" She said with her smile turning more sad.

It had been several years since they last had contact with Jeremiah. Cadmus had been radio silent on his condition and he no longer appeared alongside Cyborg Superman/the real Hank Henshaw. It was as if he just disappeared again.

The Jeremiah that Eliza missed was the one who taught Alex how to love the ocean and surf on it. It was just easier to talk about him in past tense at this point. Eliza had closed the door to him permanently after that first betrayal. Even if he did come back again, he'd never really be _back_.

Maggie reached over and held onto Eliza's hand. "I bet he would've."

…

"Alright, one more wave and then we go in." Alex told Nova. "I can already see a sunburn starting on your nose and cheeks."

They'd been out for well over two hours and were having so much fun that they forgot about reapplying sunscreen consistently. They reapplied once, but once wasn't enough. Alex was sure she was going to have a burn mirroring Nova's too. That, and Alex was getting hungry again.

Nova had been standing more and more confidently and sound on each wave she took. She was making a lot of progress for her first time out. It looked like that longboard practicing paid off even if it was only a week.

"Fine," Nova said reluctantly. "But I want you to watch from the beach this time!"

"Just be careful, okay?" Alex said to her. It was bold for Nova to do one where she was the only one out on the water. Alex was a little nervous about letting that happen and the waves were starting to get a little bigger. She was doing so well, but Alex knew she had to be getting tired.

"Go, I've got this. I'll be careful." Nova spoke confidently.

With one last look to make sure Nova was okay, Alex rode the next wave in on her stomach. Once she was on the beach, Alex stood next to Maggie and gave Nova the thumbs up. And up Nova went on the next wave.

This one was a little bigger than the waves Nova had been on before. It was a little harder to handle and she found herself struggling with it. She had half a mind to just ride it in on her stomach or knees, but she was too stubborn to do so.

Up and standing, Nova smiled. Once again, she found herself flying… But it was only for a meager five seconds before that wasn't the case anymore. Her mistake came when she felt unbalanced and shifted her lead foot too far to the side to compensate. Her board tipped and she found herself back in the ocean water.

She was only under for a second or two before she came up again, coughing and sputtering some. She was fine, just got a little too much saltwater into her mouth. She wasn't far out from the beach and almost got the whole way in before she found herself being guided the rest of the way by Alex. On the beach, Alex patted her back, helping her to get out the little bit of water.

"I'm good," Nova said with a slight rasp to her voice. "It just caught me by surprise."

Alex knew from experience how much it sucked to be caught off guard by a wave. It all came with the territory of surfing but never really got easier.

Maggie came up beside her and pulled her into a hug. "Are you sure you're okay?" She fussed over her making sure she really was alright. It was horrible for her watch her daughter be tossed into the wave like that. It had everyone feeling scared and worried.

"Yeah, I'm okay," Nova reassured her and hugged Maggie back. "Falling is all a part of learning, right?"

"Yes it is," Alex confirmed, unable to resist joining in on the now group hug.

"I promise I was being careful, Alex." Nova said when they let her go.

Alex nodded, "I know you were… The wave was just a little too big, and your step was just a little too wide… We can pick up where we left off tomorrow, but I think we're done for the day."

Nova stifled a yawn, the exhaustion setting in now. "I could go for a nice shower and nap before Kara and Lena show up."

"Sounds like an excellent plan," Alex confirmed before they all set off back towards the house.

* * *

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Again, thank you all for reading! Thoughts?

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If there's anything specific that you'd like to see, leave a comment on the chapter or come say hi on tumblr. I have my asks open (The-SuperLizard). If twitter is more your thing, you can find me there too ( the_superlizard). I can't guarantee that I'll add something in, but I'll see what I can do! I'm always open for new ideas.


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